
Class . 
Book_ 



COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT 



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MMMOnWMMmMi 



TWENTY-FIRST EDITION '^ 




as-ceNTS«- 




» »WW >IC I'IM Ii m»HW vM 






LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 



Sheli\ ' 



UNITED STATE.S OF AMERICA. 



THE 



ADIRONDACKS: 



ILLUSTRATED, 



CONTAINING 



NARRATIVE OF A TRIP THROUGH THE WILDERNESS, WITH DESCRIPTION OF THE NATURAL 

FEATURES OF THE REGION ; HINTS CONCERNING SUPPLIES AND GENERAL 

OUTFIT FOR CAMP AND TRAIL ; COST AND MANNER OF REACHING 

THE VARIOUS RESORTS ; HOTELS, WITH CAPACITY, PRICE 

OF BOARD, ETC.; TABLES OF ELEVATION AND 

DISTANCES ; MAPS, ETC., ETC. 



' BY 

S. R. STODDA 







-ishingtc^ 



AUTHOR OF 



^'TlCONDEROGA," "LaKE GeORGE, ILLUSTRATED," EtC. 

TWENTY-FIRST EDITION. 

GLENS FALLS, N. Y. 

PUBLISHED BY THE AUTHOR. 

Copyright, 1891, by S. R. Stoddard. 



7tH^+ 



r 







Information gathered from all available sources, is 
arranged in the following pages on a carefully considered 
system. In the net-work of ways with their multitude of 
branches traversing the wilderness of Northern New York 
continuity of progress may not be. A comprehensive 
glance will help you in acquiring necessary details. Here 
is the key. 

As a WHole the Adirondacks is considered on page 
XIII, under head of " Gateways." Following each gate- 
way are lines leading to particular centres, giving dis- 
tances and fares, with references to pages where more 
extended mention may be found. Places and specially 
noted features are indexed on page IX j hotels, lakes, 
ponds and mountains are given in special indexes. Ex- 
penses are touched upon at pages 6 and 208 ; various sug- 
gestions concerning camp and outfit on pages 208 to 215 ; 
fishing pages 216 to 223. The advertisements (indexed on 
page 221) are interesting, for therein each man speaks for 
himself. 

Specific Points about which you would learn may 
be had if you will consult the index. If instead you would 
wander free as the vagrant bee, gathering honey from 
every flower, throw the book away — you don't need it. If 
undecided as to way follow the " Professor " and the 
writer through the " Narrative " so long as the company 
please you. It represents an erratic course that covers 
substantially the most interesting and diverse interior por- 
tions of the wilderness, noting by the way such changes 
as time and improved facilities for transportation have 
brought about since the trip was made, contrasting the 
old and the new in the procession of changeful years. 



VI Greeting. 1S91. 

The preservation of the forests is a question of 
\ital importance not only to the Adirondack region itself 
but to the State and country as well. About one-third of 
the mountain and wilderness region is drained by the 
Hudson, the remainder by streams that run into the St. 
Lawrence and it is a curious fact that the section where 
the great Hudson River and its higher tributaries rise 

are less 
known to 
the public 
than al- 
most any 
other 
part. It 
is also a 
fact that 
'.his sec- 
tion is be- 
ing gradu- 
ally strip- 
ped of its 
valuab le 
trees far 
up into 
rugged 
Indian 
Pass and 
around its 

ILighc p-irtion shows Hudson River draitage/ wild head 

waters, except when an occasional narrow belt is left un- 
touched around the more important lakes All this section, 
with a good part of the western water-shed, should be 
under control of the State, and would be cheap at almost 
any price, iiow^ before irreparable injur}- is done. How 
near that point has been reached cannot be determined 
yet, but the gradual annual shrinking in the water supply 
of the Hudson, with its sudden floods and as sudden dr}'. 




Greeting, 1891. vii 

ing-up of tributary streams, are warnings that should not be 
ignored. The lumberman, engaged in an honorable (and 
profitable) business is not to be blamed for making what 
he can out of it. It is a pure matter of business with him 
as, with dynamite and giant powder, he clears away ob- 
structions in mountain gorges and wilderness streams, and 
with dams, floods, and drains the valleys until the retiring 
waters leave behind them but decay and death. Following 
the lumberman comes the woodpulp fiend who strips the 
hills of the softer wood, which the lumberman has pointed 
to with pride as showing that he did not cut away the forests, 
until finally the "duff" which through ages past has slowly 
climbed the mountain sides aftording support to the com- 
pensating vegetation that in turn deposits more duff higher 
up — opened to the sun becomes as tinder; then comes 
the fire, and after that the deluge. The legislature rises 
to the occasion by authorizing the purchase of wild land at 
the munificent rate of one dollar and fifty cents per acre. 
Meantime, the club man and the lumberman and the char- 
coal man and the woodpulp man and the man with a little 
money to invest for a rise, are each and all quietly absorb- 
ing the valuable portions, and the little that falls back on 
the State comes after being robbed of that which alone 
makes its possession a thing to be desired. 

Clubs multiply and large sections of wild land are 
being acquired by individuals and private corporations to 
be set aside as " reserves for the preservation of the 
forests and the propagation of game and fish," and of 
course, held for their owners' private use. To this the in- 
digent public can have no reasonable grounds for objec- 
tion, unless the owners, overcome by greed of gain, become 
amateur lumbermen and themselves threaten the destruc- 
tion of the forests they set out to preserve, when the public 
would be justified in taking the matter into its own hands. 

I would enact a law prohibiting forever the cutting of 
any evergreen tree except with the approval of competent 



VIII Greeting, 1891. 

authority under the government, on any land in New York 
State lying 1,800 feet above tide. Then let clubs and 
individuals struggle for the acreage to their heart's content. 

Railroads. There are railroads and rumors of rail- 
roads. Among those projected are an extension of the 
Chateaugay R. R. to Lake Placid; a continuation of the 
Adirondack from North Creek northward through the 
wilderness and another known as the Adirondack and St. 
Lawrence Railway of which Dr. W. Seward Webb is presi- 
dent, is surveyed northward through the western part of 
the wilderness, passing near Fulton Chain, Albany and 
Smith's Lakes, through the Mud Lake country, thence 
easterly to a junction with the N. A. R. R. at Tupper 
Lake and continuing past Saranac Inn and Paul Smith's 
to Malone. This last mentioned section from Tupper Lake 
north is materializing and will, it is expected, be in opera- 
tion in August of the present pear. A branch road is laid 
out from this main line into the Adirondack League Club's 
Preserve, another from the Fulton Chain eastward past 
Raquette Lake to Blue Mountain Lake and a third from 
Bisf Clear Pond to Saranac Lake. 

This book is revised and published annually, and, as 
it is impossible for the writer to visit every portion of the 
wilderness before publication, it will be considered a favor 
if anyone noting errors or omissions of importance will call 
attention to the fact either in person or by letter. 

Hotel Owners and others proposing to take summer 
boarders in the Adirondacks are requested to send, annu- 
ally, before May ist, information as to the number of 
guests they will accommodate, price for board by the day 
and week, name and post office address, date of opening 
and closing, distance and direction from some well known 
point with particulars as to transportation, stating price 
and kind of conveyance. The substance of such informa- 
tion will be published free in the current number of the 
book. 



insriDE^c 



PAGE. 

Adirondacks 

In general i 

Adirondack P.0 182 

Adirondack Club 130 

League Club 203 

Sanitarium 9T 

Mt. Reserve 165 

Euiaed Vlllaee... 127 
Adventure, fish ball. . 101 

Advertisements 237 

Au Sable Chasm 33 

Battle of Plattsburgh. 51 
Battle of Valcour.. . 45 

Beaver River 207-a 

Bixby, Dr. G. F 53 

Bloomingdale 62-b 

Blue Mt. Lake 192 

Bluff Point 47 

Boonville 206 

Brightside-on-Raq'tte 203 

Brown. John 75-82 

Brown Tract 206 

Burlington 31 

Camp suggestions... 211 

Carillon 22 

Carryinff experience. 118 
Cedar Lakes (el. 2,529) 193 

Cedar River 192 

Chateaugay Chflsm... 52 

Champlain Lake 14 

Champlain, Sam'lde. 14 

Cheatertown 179 

Childwold Station . . . 109-a 

Chubb River 96 

Clinton Prison. ... 57 

Colden Csmp 131 

Crab Island 51 

Crown Point Ruins . . 24 

Cumberland head 50 

Downey's Landing. .109-a 
"Ea£le'"B Nest," The . . 122 

Eliza bethtown 148 

Essex 30 

Ethan Allen 21 

Euba Dam 151 

Exrenses estimated . . 6 
Fishing, tackle, flies. 216 
Fish,where found.... 223 

Forestry Laws 224 

Fort Frederick 24 

Fort Ticonderoga 19 

',ale 99- A 

Gateways, spec! 

pages xiii, XIV, xv 

Guides, relating to. . . 214 

Game Laws 222 

Henderson, David 126 

Hotels, ppe'l index xi 

Indian Carry 105 

Indian Face 168 



PAGB. 

Indian Lake 191 

Indian Pass (el. 2,937, 

90).... 132 

Insect Preparations.. 213 

Keene 83 

Keene Valley 157-256 

Keeseville 44 

Lakes, epe'l head. X 

Lake Placid 89-93 

LakePleasent 191 

Long Lake Village... 114 

Lovirville 206 

Luzerne ITi* 

Lyon Mountain 59 

M alone 56 

Marion River 203 

Maps, epe'l head,, xi 

Map.MutroQoced 7 

Marcy, ascent of 170 

Marion River 197 

Medicine chest 213 

M.neville(el.l,347, 15) 26 

Minerva 189 

Moose River 205 

Mountains,8pe- 

cial head x 

Narrative 9 

Ned Buntline 122 

Newcomb 123 

North Creek 189 

North Elba 83 

Old Mountain Phelps. 158 

"On the tramp" 125 

Outfit, Suggestions... 4 
camp and woods. .. 208 
sporting 214 

Parks, Preserves^ 

Aairoudack Glub... 130 

Adirondack Mt 165 

^ L C 202 

Childwold.'.'...'.'." i09-c 

Ne-Ha-Sa-Ne 207-b 

Summer 202 

Phantom Falls 120 

Peasleviile 62-c 

Pilot, The 13 

Plattsburgh 51 

Pleasant Vallev. ..148-152 
Ponds, ^pe'l head, x 

Potsram " 181 

PottersAille 180 

Port Henry 24 

PortKert 31 

Railroads 

Adirondack 189 

Adirondack (Nor'n) .57 
Ad-k & St. L...109-E 
Au Sable Chasm «fc . i 
Keesville 32 



PAOX. 

A. &St. L 207-B 

Au Sable (branch). 62-d 
Carthage & Adiron- 
dack 207-c 

Chateaugay . .57, 222-238 

"D. &H." 226 

Fulton Chain 205 

Hudson Rivtr 225 

West Shore 225 

Raquette Falls Ill 

RaqnetteLake... 112, 202 
Raquette River.. 108-109-D 
Ray Brook. ...... 94 

Red Horse Chain. .207-b 

Riverside 179 

Roaring Brook Falls. 163 

Rock Dunder 31 

Root's 187 

Rouse's Point 54 

Routes to Gateways. . 225 
SaranacLake(village). 98 

Sageville 191 

Sanitarium 95 

Saranac Club 101 

SaranacLake 62-b 

Schroon Lake 183 

South Inlet 204 

SplitRock, 29 

Sporting outfit 214 

Stage Lines to ^ 

Adirondack Loge.. 149 

BlueMt. Lake 191 

Elizabethtown 149 

Keen Vallev 149 

Lake Placid 149 

Long Lake 116 

Pauf Smith's 60 

Schroon Lake... 149. 180 
St. Regis Lake 62-B 

Steamboats 

BlueMt. Lake 196 

Fulton Chain 207-A 

Hndson River 225 

Lake Champlain, 

10,27,28.55 

Stony Creek HI 

Sweenev carry 108 

Tahawa"s(P. O.^ 125 

Ticonderoga. Fort... 19 

Valcour Island 45 

Verorennf s 29 

Westport 25 

Whitehall 17 

Willsborongh Point . . 30 

Wilmington 02-D 

Wilmington Notch... 71 

Wood Creek 17 

Y. M. C. A 25 



Index. 



LAKES AND PONDS. 



ELKVATION. PAGE. 

Albany Lake 1,704 207-b 

Ampersand Pond 8,078 

Auarar Pond 45 

An Sable Lake (Lower).. .1.959 169 

All Sable Lake (Upper).. 1.993 169 

Avalanche Lake 2,856 131 

Beaver Lake 1,435 207-a 

Blue Mountain Lake 1,800 192 

Bog Lake 1,755 227-b 

Boreas Pond 2,046 

Bottle Pond 207-c 

Calamity Pond 2,712 127 

Canada Lakes (West) 2,348 193 

Cascade Lakes 2,038 83 

Catlin Lake 1,583 124 

Cedar Lakes 2,529 191 

Chain Lake (Seven) 191 

Champlain 99 15 

Chapel Pond 1,551 164 

Chateaugay Lake (Lower). 56 

Chateaugay Lake (Upper). 59 

ChazyLake 1,500 58 

Clear Lake 2,159 86 

Colden Lake 131 

Cranberry Lake 1,540 207-c 

Crooked L. (Herkimer Co ) 2,022 

Eagle Lake 1.800 197 

Elk Lake (Mad Pond).... 1,931 187 

ForkedLake 1,753 120 

Forked Lake (Little) . . .. 121 

Francis Lake 1,457 207-b 

Fulton Chain— First Lake 1,684 206 

Fulton Chain— Eighth L . . 1,803 206 

George 343 243 

Giant's Washbowl .... 2 233 164 

Ha4-knes8 Lake 131 

Henderson Lake 1,874 131 

Indian Lake 1,705 191 

Lake Placid 1,863 93 



ELEVATION. PAGE. 

LeweyLake .....1,738 191 

Long Lake 1.614 113 

Long Pond 1,581 

Loon Lake (Fraoklin Co.). 61 

Luzerne Lake 177 

Massawepi& Lake 109-c 

Meacham Lake 53 

Mirror Lake 1,856 88 

Moose Lake 1,787 207-a 

Mud Lake 1,745 207-B 

Paradox Lake 187 

Paradox Pond 93 

Pharaoh Lake 187 

Piseco Lake 192 

Placid Lake 1.863 93 

Pleasant 1,706 192 

Preston Ponds 2,206 131 

Ragged Lake 53 

Rainbow Lake 62-a 

RaquetteLake 1,774 121-198 

Raquette Pond 109-a 

Red Horse Cham 1 ,756 207-B 

Round Lake 1,542 100 

Sanford Lake 1.800 104 

Saranac Lake (Lower) ... 1.539 96 

Saranac Lake (Middle) . . 1,542 100 

Saranac Lake (Upper) ...1,577 126 

SchroonLake 830 180 

Smith's Lake 1,725 110 

South Pd. (Hamilton Co.)l 769 184 

Sitony Creek Ponds 1,643 111 

St. Reels Lakes 1,623 60 

Tear of the clouds 4,321 170 

Thirteenth Lake 1,953 190 

Titus Lake 52 

Tapper Lake (Big) 1,554 109-B 

Tupper Lake (Little) 1,728 111 

Utowana Lake 201 

West Canada Lakes 2,348 202 



MOUNTAINS. 
(Table of Elevations.) 



;ANK. NAME. ELEV. 

Ampersand 3.432 

Battlett .3,715 

5 Basin 4,905 

Black 2,661 

Blue Mountain 3.824 

Catamount Mounfc'n 3.128 
Cobble Hill 1,936 

11 Colden 4,753 

20 Colvin 4,142 

Crane's 3.289 

4 Dix 4.916 

17 Giant 4.530 

18 Gothic 4,744 

6 GravPeak 4.902 

3 Haystack 4,918 

10 Little Haystack 4,766 

Hopkin's Peak.... 3,136 

Hurricane 3,763 

Indian Face (appr.).2,536 



PAGE. 



169 


19 


169 




172 


1 


199 


2 


62 


14 


151 




131 




165 






13 


1.56 




160 


16 


160 


15 


172 


18 


169 


i 


160 




151 




161 


8 



:. NAME. ELEV. PAGE. 

Mount Jo 86 

Lyon Mountain. . ..3,809 59 

Macomb 4,371 

Marcy (Tahawus).. . .5,344 2-171 

Mclntire 5,201 147 

Nipple Top 4,684 171 

Noon-Mark 3,548 157^ 

North River 3.758 

Owl's Head 2,825 113 

Redfield 4,688 

Resagonia 165 

Saddle 4.536 

Santanoni 4,644 

Seward 4,384 113 

Skylight 4,889 171 

Snowy 3,903 

St. Regis 2,888 96 

Wallface 3,893 146 

Whiteface 4,871 67 



Index. 



XI. 



HOTELS. 



TAGE. 

Adirondack House 

(Keene Valley) 160 

Adirondack Houie 

(Saranac Laice).... 98 
Adirondack Lodge. . . 86 

Algonquin, The 99-e 

American II., N. Ck... 189 

Aniiere, The 193 

Berkele}^ House 98 

Blanchard'8 2()0 

Blue Mt. Lake House. 193 
BlneMt.H. (Bl.M. L.) 195 
BrightPideon R'(i't... 200 

Burlington, Hotel 32 

Call s Hotel 192 

Camp Craig 207-a 

Cascade Lake House. 84 

Castle Rustico 95 

Cedar I. Camp 207-a 

Chasm House 52 

Champlain, Hotel ... 47 
Chazj Lake House. . . 58 

Chester House 179 

ChildwoldP'KH....109-c 
Clear Pond H. Big... 261 
Cranberry Lake H...207-C 

Crystal Spring H 62-b 

Cumberlaiid H 52 

Elba House 96 

E^tes House 160 

Fair A'iew House 195 

Fen ton House 207-a 

Flume Cottage 161 

Forge House 206 

Fourth L. H 206 

Foquet House 52 

Gibbs House 25 

Grove Ft. H. (Sc'n L.) 183 
Grove H. (Long L.).. 115 
Grand View House. . . 91 
Hathorn's Golden Bh. 200 

Hemlocks, The 198 

Hiawatha House Ill 

Hotel Ampersand 99-a 

Hotel Champlain 47 

Hotel Flanagan 56 



PAGE. 

H"l Wlndsor(Ro's'sPt) 54 
Indian Point House. . 61 
Interlaken, The .... 45 
Keene Centre House. 83 
Lake Placid House. . . 93 
Lake House (Schroon) 185 
Lake Pleasant Inn. .. 192 

Lakeside House 109 

Lake View House 35 

Lee House 23 

Leland Cottage 187 

Leiand House 183 

Lewey Lake House.. 193 

Lin wood Cottage 98 

Long Lake Hotel 114 

Loon Lake House . . . 01 
McCoy's Rustic L'd'e 105 

Mansion House 148 

Martin's 96 

Maple Grove Mt. H.. 161 
Meacham Lake House 56 

Merriirs 60 

Mirror Lake Hotel. ... 89 
Moose River House.. 205 

Mt. Morris House 109-p 

Mountain View ( N. 

Elba) 84 

Mount'nView (Frank- 
lin County) 56 

North River Hotel .... 190 

Ondawa House 186 

Paul Smith's ( St. 

Regis) 62-B 

Pleasant View House 25 

Pond View House 99-y 

Prospect House (Blue 

Mountain Lake 195 

Prospect H. (Schr'n) . 187 

Poltersville Hotel 181 

Rainbow House 62-a 

Raquette Falls Hotel.. Ill 

Ray Brook House 96 

Ralph's 59 

Redside Camp 109-e 

Rockwell's Hotel 178 

Riverside House 97 



page. 

River View House 178 

Rush Point Camp.... 200 

Rustic Lodge 105 

Root's 187 

Sagamore (Long L.).. 114 
St. Hubert's Cottage.. 163 

St. Hubert's Inn 162 

Saranac Inn 106 

Saranac Lake House. .99-0 
Schroon Lake House.. 195 
Stevens H. (L. Placid). 92 

Storrs House 62-e 

St. Regis Lake H 6a-B 

Tahawus House. . .. 160 

Taylor House 182 

Tromblee's 108 

Tupper Lake H 109-F 

Under Cliff 95 

Valley House 148 

Van Ness House 32 

Watch Rock Hotel... 182 

Wawbeek Lodge 107 

Wayside (Luzerne) . . . 178 

Westportinn 27 

Wells House 181 

AA'hite Face Inn 94 

White Face Mt. H . . ..62-D 
Willsborongh, The... 30 
Windsor (Elizab'ht'u) 149 
Windsor (Schroon L.) 186 
Witherill House 52 

Albany. 

Hotel Kenmore... 235 

Lake George. 

Fort Wm. Henrv... 230 
Hundred Island H.. 233 

Burleigh House 233 

Marion House 232 

Pearl Point 232 

Saratoga. 

Clarendon 281 

Dr. Strongs 261 

Windsor 261 



Au Sable Chasm 40 

An Sable Lake 166-c 

Biue Mount'n Lake.. 199 

Champlain Lake 16 

Childwold Park 109-c 

Elizabethtown 166-a 

Forked Lake 199 



MAPS. 

Gateways xiii 

Keene Vallev 156 

Lake Placid'. 94 

Port Kent Route 26 

Raquette River 116 

Raquette Lake 199 

Saranac L'ke (low'r). 98 



Saranac L'ke(upp'ri.. 107 

Saranac Inn Co 107 

Schroon Lake. 181 

Tupper Lake. . .109-F 116 
Westport to Lake 
Placid 160-A 



GATEWAYS TO THE ADIRONDACKS. 



(Page reference refers to pa^es in "The Adirondacks Illustrated.") 

Please to consider Mount 
Marcy the pivot on which mighty 
hands turn around over the dial 
of the Adirondacks, and Platts- 
burgh will fairly represent I 
o'clock, Port Kent II, Westport 
III. For convenience, there- 
fore, we will call Plattsburgh 
Gateway No. i, and let others 
follow in order as the hand turns 
the familiar way around the en- 
tire circle. Distances are given 
here in black figures and are 
reckoned from gateways in every 
instance unless otherwise ex- 
plained. Fares are also given 
from " gateways " or point speci- 
fied. 

NO. 1, PLATTSBURGH, 
via Chateaugay R. R. to Danne- 
mora. 70c.; Chazy Lake Sta- 
tion, $1.20 ; Lyon Mountain, 

$1.40 (stage to Ralph's and Merrill's, 50 cents); Loon Lake, $2.40; 
(stage to Loon Lake 
House, 50 cents);Bloom. 




CmAWAvoat lakes 
^.jqH mount aim 



ingdale, $3.00 (stage to 
Crystal Spring House, 25 
cents ; stage to Paul 
Smith's. |i. 00) ; Saranac 
Lake, )s;3.35; stage to 
Miller's, The Algonquin 
and Hotel Ampersand, 
50 cents each (page 96); 
stage to Lake Placid, 
^1.25; (page 89); stage 
to Saranac Inn, $1.50 
(page 105). 

From Plattsburgh via 
Branch R. R. to Au Sa- 
ble Station,$i.oo; stage 
(morning) to Keene Val- 
ley (page 153) Wilmington, $2.00 ; Lake Placid, 

NO. 2, P O R T 
KENT, by K., A. C 
& L. C. R. R. to Au 
Sable Chasm. (See 
■pages 33 to 45). Au 
Sable Station, (morn- 
ing stage), i^i.so; "Wil- 
mington, $2.50; Lake 
Placid, $4.00 (page 
89). 







.50 (page 89). 



Figures ihoM dit*ant9 





Gateways. 
n0.3,westp0rt, 

stage (connecting with 
all irains and boats), to 
Elizabeth! OWE , J^ i . oo ; 
(page 148). Stages from 
midday tr.,in and after- 
noon boat at Westport, 
run to Keene Valley- 
passing all hotels to St! 
Hubert's Inn. Fare 
$2.50. (See p. 153). Keene Valley to Au Sable Lake morning and 
afternoon. Stage fare, 75c. Stages from Elizabethtown, morning' 
to Keen, $2 50; Cascade House, $3.00; Adirondack Lodge, I4.50' 
Ames', I3.50; Lake Placid, $4. (See pages S3 to 94.) 

NO. 4, PORT HENRY, 
stage (evening) to Mineville, 
morning st^ge from Mine- 
ville to Root's, $1.50; (Tues- 
day, Thursday, and Satur- 
day.) to Newcomb, I3.00. 

NO. 5, CROWN POINT, 
C. P. I. R. R. to Hammondville, 60c; 
to Paradox, $1.10; Schroon Lake, 

NO. 6, TICONDEROGA 
from Delano to Ticonderoga 
mites. (Hotel, Burleigh 
to Schroon Lake, 20 




stage 

$2.10. 

Branch 

Village, 2 

House.) Special 

, __ miles, or Root's, 

thence to Long Lake, same as No. 4. 

FORT TICONDEROGA (station); train 

through Lake George to 

Caldwell. 

NO. 7, SARATOGA, 
to Luzerne, 69c; (page 
i77)Riverside,$i.5o; stage 
toChestertown,$2.25; Pot- 
tersville, $2.50 ; head of 
Schroon Lake, (steamer), 
$3-25. (See page 180.) 
Saratoga to NorthCreek, 
$1.74; (page 189) stage to 
North River.$2.25;(page 
190), Indian Lake, $3. 50; 
Blue Mountain Lake, 4.75; (page 193) 
Long Lake, $6.25; page 
ir4)through Blue Mt. and 
Raquette Lake to 
Forked Lake Carry, by 
steamer, $6.50. (Pages 
121 and 202.) 

NO. 8, FONDA, Rail- 
road to Northville, Si. 00; 
stage to Sageville, $3.00. 
For WoodhuU Lake and 
Bisby Chain leave the 
R. W. & O. Railroad at 




CROWN 



to Baldwin, steamer 





_. Alder Creek Sta- 
tion, special to White Lake, 9 miles; to Wood- 
hull Lake, 19 miles. 



Gateways. 



ALDER CREEK to Honnedaga Lake. 
Club preserve), "^o miles, special conveyance. 

NO. 9, BOONEVILLE. Stage daily 
to Moose River, 12 miles, $1.00. Rail- 
road to Minnehaha, 20 miles, $2.00. 
Steamer to Forge House, $3.00. Steam- 
er on Fulton Chain to head of Fourth 
Lake (steamer 12 miles, |i.oo). Page 
206. 

NO. 10, LOWVILLE, stage to 



(Adirondack League 



25 14 ^"^^^^ 





"Number Four," Beaver Lake, iS miles (special 4 or 5 persons, 
$6.) To Stillwater, $12. (Page 211.) 

NO. 11, CARTHAGE, Railroad to Lake Bonaparte, 17 miles, 
54 cents ; Oswegatchie, 39 miles, $1.17 ; Benson Mines, 44 miles, 

$1.32; Cranberry Lake overflow (trail) 48 
miles ; Cranberry Lake House, guide's 
boat, =;4 miles, (See page 213.) 

no: 12, DE KALB JUNCTION, stage 
to Clarksboro, 22 miles, special conveyance 
to Cranberry Lake, 36 miles. (Page 207-c.) 
NO. 13, POTSDAM, stage daily to Col- 
ton, 75 cents ; South Colton, $1. To Stark, 
(Monday, Wednesdav .and Friday, at 7 a. m.), 
|i .75 ; Sevey, $2.75 ;' Childwold, I3. (Page 
109-A.) 

N0.14, MORIA,R.R. to St.Regis Falls, 
50 cents ; Santa Clara, go cents ; Spring 
Cove, $1.15; (Blue Mountain House, 4 
miles from Spring Cove, fare 75 cents;) 
Paul Smith Station, $1.50; Paul 
Smith's (siage), $2. (Page 57.) Sar- 
anac Inn Station, $2; (Saranac Inn 
by stage, $1); Childwold Station, $2. 50; 
(Childwold Park House, by stage, $1 ; 
page 109-C.) Tupper Lake Station, 
^2.50; (Wawbeek 
Lodge, by stage. JfJi.) 
Steamboat to Tup- 
per Lake House, 
$3.50 ; page 109-E. 

NO. 15, MA- 
LONE, stage (Mon- 
day, Wednesday and 
Friday) to Duane, 
$1.50; Loon Lake, 
$3. (Page 55). 

NO. 16, CHATEAUGAY, daily stage to the 
foot of Lower Chateaugay Lake, 50 cents. A 
steamer runs daily, making the excursion of the 
two lakes, $r. See pages 55 and 59 to 62. 





JOKOt 
HILDnRl 

.pf°*' . IPs 6 64 ioo<^B 



1^ 



THE ADIRONDICKS. 




CHAPTER I. 
In General. 

N wings of thought swifter than the light- 
ning's flash we sweep away across the drowsy 
earth, over ■ smoke -polluted cities, sun- 
scorched meadows, burning plain and high- 
ways with their flaunting skirts of sand, nor 
rest until the fragrant odor of wild flowers 
and the dewy breath of forest trees come 
like incense wafted to us from below. 

Come with me up into a high mountain. 
I cannot show you " all the kingdoms of 
the world," — but "the glory of them." Over a rippling 
ocean of forests first, in long, swelling waves now rising, 
now sinking down into deep hollows ; here in grand moun- 
tains, crested as with caps of foam, there tormented by 
counter currents into wildly dashing shapes, like ocean bil- 
lows frozen by Divine command, their summit-glittering 
granite, their deep green troughs, gleaming with threads of 
silver and bits of fallen sky. 

Now the trees of the valley glide away behind us, then 
come dark spruce and pine and the sturdy balsam climbing 
the mountain-side — tall and graceful at first, but growing 
smaller as they rise, gnarled and twisted, and scarce above 
the surface, sending their branches out close along the 
ground, their white tops bleached and ghastly, like dead 
roots of upturned trees, the hardy lichens still higher ; then 
comes naked rock, and we stand on the wind-swept summit 



2 The Adirondacks. 

of the monarch of the Adirondacks — " Tahawus," the 
cloud-spHtter of the Indian. 

Around their chief, cluster the other great peaks — east, 
west, north, south, Hmitless, numberless, a confused mass of 
peaks and ridges, crowding close up to the base of the one 
on which we stand, and receding in waves of green all down 
through the scale of color to its blue and purple edge. Pen 
cannot convey an idea of its sublimity ; the pencil fails to 
even suggest the blended strength and delicacy of the scene. 
The rude laugh is hushed, the boisterous shout dies out on 
reverential lips, the body shrinks down, feeling its own little- 
ness, while the soul expands, and, rising above the earth, 
claims kinship with its Creator, questioning not His 
existence. 

Standing on this, the highest point in the State of New 
York, 5,344 feet above tide, we will glance at the country 
around. The term, at first applied to this cluster of moun- 
tains, which occupy less than one-quarter of the region, has 
come by usage to mean the entire wilderness, an area of 
over 8,000 square miles of almost unbroken forest. The 
grand mountain region is in the center on the east, dropping 
off suddenly into Lake Champlain ; around it, and sweeping 
away to the west, is a vast, comparatively level plateau, 
nearly 2,000 feet above tide, with here and there a moun- 
tain peak overlooking the plain, the two regions differing in 
every respect, save in the dense forests that cover both. If 
you are given to muscular exercise, climbing and viewing 
nature from high places, choose the eastern portion. If con- 
stitutionally tired, or inclined to dream away the quiet hours, 
then go to the magnificent west, where lakes and streams 
are so closely connected that almost every mile of that vast 
tract may be traversed by boat, save short carries from one 
water system into another, or around some fall. Camping 
even is not necessary if you prefer hotel life, for there are 
but few wilderness routes that do not have halting places 
less than a day's journey apart. 



In General. 3 

The Adirondack wilderness, as known to the public gen- 
erally, may be divided into three general divisions or sys- 
tems, which collectively entertain the great bulk of visitors, 
and are representatives of the whole, namely, the Saranac 
and St. Regis waters of Franklin county, whose natural gate- 
way is Plattsburgh and Port Kent ; the mountain region of 
Keene, North Elba and Lake Placid, in Essex county, with 
entrance at Westport ; and the Blue Mountain and Raquette 
waters, in Hamilton county, reached by way of the Adiron- 
dack railroad from Saratoga. 

Of these sections the first-mentioned has become the 
more widely celebrated as a region where fashion and fish- 
ing is admirably blended, and has its patrons who are 
looked for as regularly as the seasons. The second is less 
known in fact, but its grand mountains and lovely valleys 
have become familiar on the canvas of great painters ; while 
the Raquette region has an air of newness and morning 
freshness, as if just awakened from a long and refreshing 
sleep, and is making rapid strides in popular favor. Each 
section, while possessing something of the characteristics of 
the others, has its own individual attractions; and while 
connected by natural highways, over which the nomad often 
goes, they still to a considerable extent preserve their indi- 
viduality, and each is complete and sufiicient unto itself. 

Among the less noted divisions are the Grass and Oswe- 
gatchie region, in St. Lawrence county, which probably 
contains the most game, because less visited ; the Beaver 
and Moose river region, in Herkimer, somewhat tame, but 
affording excellent hunting and fishing; and the Lake 
Pleasant region, in southern Hamilton county, all of them 
with more or less local interest and a patronage derived prin- 
cipally from the cities of Central and Western New York. 
Keene Valley is a favorite resort with artists. Raquette 
I^ake has the most elaborate, and the Upper Saranac the 
greatest number of private camps occupied during the season. 



4 The Adirondacks. 

Places of entertainment, from the well-appointed hotel on 
the border to the rude log-house and open camp of the 
interior, are found at intervals throughout the entire wilder- 
ness, all waiting with open doors to receive the stranger, the 
consideration being from $3 per day down to $5 per week ; 
for particulars concerning which see under heading of 
" Hotels," following index. 

A peculiarity of the Adirondack region is its freedom 
from rough or vicious characters. Evil finds nothing con- 
genial in its bright skies and pure, fresh atmosphere. Con- 
ventionalities that obtain at other resorts are not held 
binding here; the fact of actual presence is accepted as 
guaranty of the possession of those mutual sympathies and 
qualifications which here, at least, make the whole world kin, 
and makes it possible for gentlemen to wear blue shirts and 
old hats, and ladies to travel without male escort from one 
end of the wilderness to the other. Indeed, it is no uncom- 
mon thing for parties of ladies to make the tour of the 
woods, accompanied only by the necessary complement of 
guides to furnish motive power, spending day after day in 
their boat, and at night reaching one step farther in the 
extended system of hotels. 

Outfit. — Full dress is seldom seen, even at the most 
fashionable resorts, and is exceeded in absurdity only by the 
conventional stage trapper, who occasionally bursts upon 
the astonished wilderness in fringed buckskin, and is marked 
at once as a '* fresh." Your right to enter the best society 
will not be questioned because of dress. Clothing ordi- 
narily worn is sufiicient for all occasions, with perhaps the 
addition of a soft felt hat and roomy walking shoes or boots 
for boat or tramp. 

Camp and Sporting Outfit, clothing, supplies, etc., are 
given in a special chapter, with various suggestions ; how 
ever, a complete list of articles considered necessary or conv 
venient should be made out, in advance of the time foii 
departure, by each individual; then, in committee of the 



In General. 5 

whole, decide on what is really necessary or suitable, taking 
into consideration the nature of the trip and means of 
reaching the appointed camping ground. If it be not over- 
difficult of access, carry anything which will contribute to 
your reasonable comfort, in the way of blankets, clothing, 
etc. Do not sleep m the clothing worn during the day, if 
it can be avoided — it is a positive luxury to be able to 
make an entire change for night use. 

The gloriously healthful air of the wilderness will unques- 
tionably give you new life and vigor, but it labors at a ter- 
rible disadvantage, if at the beginning your bed of boughs 
affords no rest; where sleep comes only with complete 
exhaustion, as is often the case in the first few nights of 
camp life, and where the early morning finds you pitiably 
weak and languid, and ready to move simply because motion 
is a relief to the poor bruised body and aching joints. 
" Roughing it " is grand in theory, and sounds well in after 
history, but is bad in practice and often impedes, if it does 
not entirely defeat the object for which it was undertaken. 
You are presumably out for pleasure, do not, therefore, 
make severe labor of it ; have paid help sufficient to do 
camp work, if, at any time, inclination tempt you to watch 
the zenith from some mossy vantage ground, or to drift idly 
among the still waters, absorbing with newly awakened 
instincts the subde lessons taught by nature. 

If your party can affi^rd the expense, take your cook 
along. Guides, as a rule, can prepare an acceptable forest 
meal, and some are very skillful in that Hne, but the very 
qualities which contribute to make the successful guide — 
"the mighty hunter" — often renders him indifferent to the 
quality of his food, and incapable of understanding the 
cravings of a delicate appetite ; at all events, carry a cook 
book. Camp fare is apt to become monotonous after a 
time, and although familiar with a hundred dishes, when 
brought face to face with the appalling necessity of prepar- 
ing a straight meal, your mind becomes a blank and you 



6 The Adirondacks. 

drop weakly back to the same old stew of yesterday— and 
the day before — and life becomes a burden. 

Expenses cannot be fairly estimated, varying so widely 
with the habits and requirements of different individuals. 
If you travel simply in channels having public conveyance, 
the cost may be accurately determined by referring to fares, 
etc., found under their a.ppropriate heading in this book. 
If you go outside the public lines of travel, or camp, you 
will require the service of a guide. 25 to 30 cents per day 
will supply the table with necessaries, and some luxuries 
even, for each person while in camp. 

Guides, terms for service, suggestions, etc., page 214. 

Hotels. — Information relating to hotels is gathered an- 
nually, and prices charged for board given with notice of 
house in " Hotel Directorv," at back of book, for which see 
special index, page vii. 

" Gateways " will lead you from circumference to centre 
of the wilderness, with line, distances and fares ; while under 
the heading of " railroads, steamboats and stages," will be 
found approaches and general information — for all of which 
see index. 

Trout, their habits and peculiarities, with suggestions as 
to outfit, fishing, etc., is treated at length in chapter XIX. 
The article is from the pen of A. N. Cheney, of Glens 
Falls, an enthusiastic votary of the gentle art, and authority 
in the matter whereof he speaks, and gives, in readable 
shape more solid information ot use to those who would 
enjoy the same than a dozen of the ordinary fishing 
romances of the day, with their sensations, impi^jssions, 
tingles, thrills and frills. 

Finally, bear in mind that this volume is designed to give 
its readers, in convenient shape, information of general 
interest to the ninety and nine concerning points and places, 
r,oad,s and regions visited by them, with hints and sugges- 
tions of the deeper mysteries of camp and trail that may 



In General. 



serve to pilot the one-hundredth to points where the intelh- 
gent guide becomes an absolute necessity, and beyond which 
direction in book form would confuse, rather than instruct. 
For the sake of clearness, therefore, we have omitted descrip- 
tion of the multitude of minor lakes, ponds, streams and 
trails which duplicate each other over the entire wilderness, 
and which cannot be followed without the aid of an experi- 
enced guide. To those who would have a comprehensive 
idea of the whole region, it is hoped the map, designed to 
supplement the information contained herein, will be a wel- 
come companion until it can be safely laid aside for the more 
specific knowledge of the guide, whose office neither book 
nor map can ever fill. 

As the map of the wilderness is introduced, it may not be 

entirely uninteresting to ex- 
plain its manner of build- 
ing. A large portion of the 
great Adirondack region has 
never been surveyed with 
chain and rod, and probably 
will not be for years to come, 
but the rapid development 
of portions and the grow, 
ing importance of the 
whole as a summer resort 
makes necessary a mdp made 
specially to meet the re- 
quirements of tourist and 
sportsman. 

In its construction, all available sources of information 
have been brought into requisition. Important points 
outside the wilderness proper were determined in 
accordance with official surveys, and connected with 
the mountains of the interior, whose principal peaks 
were accurately located by triangulation made expressly 




MIVIATURE SKETCH OF MAP. 



8 The Adirondacks. 

for this work. Access has also been had to important sur* 
veys made under State patronage and by private parties, 
which are now, for the first time, given to the pubhc in map 
form. In addition to this absolutely reliable material, draw- 
ings of small sections on an extended scale, covering in the 
aggregate the entire region, were sent in duplicate to men 
famihar with the various localities for correction, and were 
made as full and complete as possible — careful attention be- 
ing given to proportion and distance — with wild trails, car- 
ries, ponds and streams, many of which are now for the first 
time laid down on any map. Reduced to an uniform scale 
by photography, the result, it is believed, approaches per- 
fection as nearly as can be, short of actual trigonometrical 
survey. It gives altitudes, as determined by late measure- 
ment ; the location of all hotels and principal camps, with 
roads leading thereto ; shows distance in figures on roads, 
trails and streams, and indicates also the nature of the latter 
in important instances. All roads within its limits are care- 
fully laid down, the leading ones distinguished from those 
less important by being in solid black fine, and altogetheir 
showing, by their number or entire absence in places, the 
cultivated or wilderness nature of that particular region. 

To the gathering, compilation and reduction of the mass 
of material made use of, and its final redrawing for the 
engraver the entire autumn and winter of 1879 were given 
and finally, with a feeling of tenderness which can be 
appreciated only by those who, in a labor of love, have seen 
its object growing under their hands from day to day until 

completion, it was sent forth for such welcome as it might 
find. 

Since its completion in 1879, as above, annual editions 
have been issued, revised, and corrected, to keep pace with 
the changes in road and trail, and for the addition of camp 
or hotel in this rapidly-growing region. 



CHAPTER II. 



Narrative. 

ING up the curtain to low, sweet music, the 
music of a September night, the blending of the 
myriad voices of the swamp into one long mono- 
tone, that seems to make you, wherever you 
stand and listen, its center. The scene is a dark 
waste of water, up out of which grow reeds 
and coarse grasses, that sway back and forth 
with the surging waves ; over at the west is a 
low range of bluffs ; on the east are mountains ; 
near by, dusky white strips run here and there, 
beyond which a broader one reflects the 
cloudy sky, dark bodies are moving slowly 
along and lights twinkle as they pass to and 
fro ; beyond, and to the south, a high hill rises up, belted with 
strings of stars ; at its base they hang in clusters ; they sepa- 
rate and pass up and down, are swung in circles, disappear and 
appear again in a most curious manner, and faintly comes the 
voices of the boatmen, the drivers, the lock-tenders, and the 
busy hum of the distant village. At the north, where the 
western wall comes down, the solid rock is notched out, ovei 
which rises the rocky crests of a mountain range, while away 
beyond winds the marsh-embordered rock-hemmed waters of 
Lake Champlain. 

A low, rumbling sound comes from the south, then the solid 
wall that shuts us in on that side seems riven asunder, and from 
out the fkartb, with breath of flame, and eve of fire gleaming 




TO The Adirondacks. 

out ahead, thunders the night express. Across the mareh. 
it comes, bringing in its train a host of lesser lights, and 
with a shriek that clashes sharply and is broken into a con- 
fused din of echoes, it plunges into the northern wall, through 
the narrow cut to the other side, and with the hiss of escaping 
steam, the noisy clanging of its bell, the rattling of iron rods 
ind links, the trembling, jerking and swaying of the long 
coaches, as the brakes are drawn hard against the moving 
Rrheels; then with the dying roar of its subsiding power, the 
iron monster rests at the end of its journey. Just for the mo- 
ment we feel the hush. 

*' the rest of the tide between the ebb and the flow." 



Then the nature of the sounds change, the quick, sharp 
words of command, of shouting and confusion, the shut- 
fling of feet, as streams of life pour out from the various 
coaches, and convergirg, flow over the broad plank on to 
the boat that has been waiting to rec eive them ; there is no 
need of asking the way ; it is plain to all, for while on the left 
is nothing but darkness and a dingy, uninviting pile of build< 
ings, on the right rises a great mass of white, with moving 
forms and flashing light ; windows bright, with stained glass 
and frosted silver, rising tier on tier, begirt with beams 
and rods of iron, and above all. coming up from the fires be- 
low, wave banners of flame, whose fiery particles separating, 
dance away and are lost in the darkness. Whew I What a 
storm, not a thunder storm exactly, although there are indi- 
cations of the sulphurous in the language sometimes heard, but 
a shower of baggage ; it rains trunks, boxes, satchels, bun- 
dles, bags, from the car which has been brought to a stop 
directlv in front of the gang-plank, and a double stream of 
trucks, drawn and propelled by stalwart men, go down undei 
huge loads, and, coming up empty, run and wheel and dodge 
about, appearing always on the point of, but never actually 
getting run over. 

Through all the confusion the man who seems to have the 
least to do stands quietly by the rail, seeing every thing, bat 
laving nothing, unless occasionally to give a command in a 
uw tone; then, as the last truck load is on the move, h« 



Under Weigh ii 

Umchet acord at hit hand, a bell up in the pilot house tinkles, a 
few quick ftrokeson the big bell follows, the last man rushes 
over the plank, which is pulled aboard, and the great hawsers 
are cast oflf ; then, again, the little bell, up where the pilot stands 
signifies that the boat is from thence out under his control, 
and he is responsible for her safety. Now, down along the 
writes to the engine-room the message goes; we hear the long 
hollow breathing of the steam as it rushes into the cylinder; 
the ponderous beam above tips slowly on its center; the 
wheels seem stepping on the water as they revolve ; the great 
mass swings out into the channel, and moves away through 
the night like a great pearl surrounded by a luminous atmos- 
phere. A little shining world all alone by itself.* 

Thus we saw it one night in 
the autumn of '73. We means 
the professor and myself. Who 
the professor is, or what he pro- 
fesses, doesn't matter, as long 
as this is a non-professional 




trip ; but it may be of interest 
considering the field selected 
for our observations to know 
that the professor is not actually 
stupendous, either in length, 
breadth or thickness, and not 
particular about his diet; perish the thought I He simply 
abstains from the absorption of that mysterious compound 
known as hash, on account of the uncertainty of its origin. 
Revolts at sight of sausages, as it is unpleasantly suggestive 
of a dear little dog that he once loved. Can't endure cream 
m his coffee, because it "looks so, floating round on top," 
and whose heart bleeds and appetite vanishes if an unlucky 
fly chances to take a hot bath in his tea. To these peculi- 
arities, add a disposition to see the fun in his own foilornness, 
and with boyishness dyed in the wool, the professor stands 
before you. As for the author of this, perhaps the least said 
the better. He hasn't the heart to say any thing bad, and a 
determination to confine himself strictly to facts, interfere! 
•omewhat with the glowing eulogy struggling to find vent 

'Tbe boat is now taken at Hconderoga, making 4ay trips only, toaviog Plattiburgli iu 
the BionuDg and retumioK in the afternoon 



12 The Adirondacks. 

■nAce it to say, that nature was very lavish in the bestowml 
of longitude, although not noticeably so in regard to latitude, 
giving also a disposition to dare, and a physical develop- 
ment capable of enduring a vast amount of arduous rest. 
Going — the dainty professor and ease-loving writer, enthu- 
siastic sportsman, with neither gun, rod, umbrella or other 
instrument of death, armed only with sketch and note-book, 
ind hearts to drink in the glories of the great wild woods 
— to the mountains for health and strength to frames not 
over strong. 

We found ourselves on board the " Vermont," the largest 
of the Champlain steamers; and as it swung out into the 
channel, went out forward, up odd little pieces of stairway 
and canvass side hills ; ducked under and climbed over iron 
rods and groped along in the darkness on the hurricane deck 
to the pilot-house. 

As we entered, our eyes becoming accustomed to the dark- 
ness, made out the form of Rockwell, the chief pilot, with 
two assistants, wrestling with the many-spoked wheel, which 
throbbed and trembled as they forced it over to one side 
while the lights ahead seemed to swing swiftly past as we 
«wept around a sharp bend in the channel. 

A quick, low word of command, and the chain rattled and 
the wheel spun around like lightning as they jumped away 
from it. 

"Now," said the pilot. 

Six hands pattered on the polished spokes, and the ait 
seemed full of clawing, jumping shadows. 

"Over with her." 

The wheel creaked and snapped with the strain brought to 
bear on it ; the lights away out ahead, that had passed acrost 
to the right, now raced wildly back to the left, and we circled 
around in the darkness, out of which, into the circle of light 
that surrounded us, came reedy shores and low lines of 
bushes, seeming almost to brush against us as we passed. 

"Steady now. Good evening, gentlemen." 

The last half of the sentence, while it was friendly, was evi- 
dently intended as a sort of reconnoissance. It had inquiry 
in it, and said plainly, " I want to hear the sound of youi 
voice." 



The Pilot. 13 

. We said, " Good evening." 

•* Up a little — steady — let her run — Oh, yes; I didn't 
recognize your voice — hard over that light's out again — 
you are a little hoarse ; ought to take something for that." 

" We were ; a trip to the mountains ; " and he said it was 
an excellent plan — ]et her chaw ; the reaction will clear her 
— -wished he could — luff a point — among the grand things 
— said she was light aft, and clawed to starboard ; asked if 
we could fully indorse Tyndall's theory of nebular hegira ; 
thought the Greek slave a perfect figure ; said she sucked 
mud through here, sometimes, and they had to be careful 
of her flues ; wanted to know if we had given the evolement 
of solar faculae much thought ; descended with Darwin to 
our remote progenitors ; gyrated among the wheeHng con- 
stellation ; floated through eternity ; touched on the crea- 
tion ; paddled around with Noah ; got lost with the children 
of Israel ; skittered along down through the dark ages ; said 
it wasn't going to rain, which suggested Sodom and Gomor- 
rah ; admired Joan of Arc — said she carried an awful head 
of steam,. but her boilers were good; wanted our opinion as 
to the probable origin of creative energy and of the cohesive 
materialism of latent force. Shades of Egypt ! the professor 
wilted, and we had to admit that Moses himself couldn't 
have taken us out of the scientific wilderness, and Rockwell 
thought Moses wasn't much of a pilot anyway. 

Thus he mixes art, science and physics while demonstrat- 
ing perfection in navigation ; peering out into the darkness, 
seeming to feel rather than see the channel ; now circling 
around a lamp hung out as a guide, then away toward others 
that seem to pass and repass each other, as we sway to and 
fro, where in places a deviation the width of the boat to the 
right or left would bring it on the muddy banks ; at times 
seeming to hang out over the reeds, anon waking a whole 
swarm of hissing, chuckling echoes as we run close under a 
rocky wall ; then onward, into broader strips of water, under 
the frowning promontory of Ticonderoga; then y*& •went 
below. 




CHAPTER III. 
Lake Champlain. 

HE first white sporting man that ever visited 
the Adirondacks was Samuel de Champlain, a 
Frenchman, who, in 1609, joined a company of 
native tourists on a gunning expedition to the 
southern borders of the future State park, 
where he fell in with a party of Iroquois and 
succeeded in bagging a satisfactory' number. 
Samuel, besides being an enthusiastic sports- 
man, was of a vivacious, happy disposition, as 
witness his felicitous description of the mannei 
in which he, at the first shot, brought down 
three out of four Aborigines, who broke cover, 
then pursued and killed some others; he 
should, however, receive no credit as a marksman, for he 
used a beastly arm called an "arquebus," a remote progeni- 
tor of the terrible blunderbuss — a shot-gun, which same, 1 
think, all will agree is beneath the dignity of a true sports- 
man to point toward such game. After this adventure, 
which happened the same year that Hendrick Hudson sailed 
up the river that now bears his name, and eleven years 
before the original pilgrims landed on Plymouth rock, he 
returned home and wrote an interesting account of the 
affair, calling the sheet of water explored after himself — Lake 
Champlain. Just two centuries after his passage in a canoe, 
the first steamboat was launched on the lake. When became, 
the Indians called it Cani adere quaranU, spelled in various 
ways, and said by learned authorities who copy it from some 
one else, to mean "the lake that is the gate of the country." 
By the early French who did not choose to recognize Cham- 
plain's right to the name, it was known as Mere Us Iroquois, 01 
"Iracosia." A book published in 1659 speaks of it as "the 
lake of Troquois, which, together with a river of the s'.zm 



The Adirondacks. 

name, running into the river of Canada, is sixty or seventy 
leagues in length. In the lake are four fair islands, which arc 
low and full of goodly woods and meadows, having store of 
game for hunting. Stagges, Fallow Dear, Elks, Roe Bucks. 
Beavers, and other sorts of beasts." In shape it is very like 
a long, slim radish, with Whitehall at the little end ; then 
comes the long root and outbranching river fibers. At Bur- 
lington, quite a respectable radish, then blotches of rock and 
island, and, beyond that, the leaves spreading out on either 
side and toward the North. 

On the east is Vermont, sweeping away from the lake in a 
broad, cultivated plain, then gradually ascending to the ridgei 
of the Green mountains; along the southern and central por- 
tion of the lake, the rocky western shores step down to the 
water's edge and backward, rising up peak on peak the high- 
est, misty with distance or hidden by the clouds that gatnei 
around ; then wild, broken and grand, the Adirondack moun- 
tains. Here and there are little bits of cultivated land and 
breaks in the mountain-gateways to the wilderness, then as 
you near Burlington, they fall away back into the interior, and 
a level, well-cultivated country presents itsel£ 

According to the United States coast survey, the distance 
from Whitehall to Fort Montgomery is 107^ miles; its 
greatest width across, from the outlet of Ausable river, 12^ 
miles, and greatest depth (at a point i| miles south-east of 
Essex landing) 399 feet. Measuring down into Missisquoi 
bay, on the east side, extending into Canada, and separated 
from the outlet by Alburgh Tongue, the extreme length of 
the lake maybe found at about 118 miles. Its elevation 
above tide is 99 feet. 

It contains a number of beautiful islands, principally near 
the north end, the two largest known respectively as North 
and South Hero, and collectively as Grand Isle, a county of 
Vermont. 

The New York. & Canada R. R., extending along the 
west shore of the lake, is the missing link in the air line 
chain between New York and Montreal, supplied by the 



l»J 



1^%^ 



I 6 



i? 



Whitehall. 17 

Delaware & Hudson Canal Company, In 1875, and in con- 
nection with the Rensselaer & Saratoga Railroad and 
Hudson River at the south, and a section of the Grand 
Trunk from the Canada line north, is the main artery of 
travel between the two great cities. At various points, rail 
or stage routes diverge, leading to the central portions of the 
wilderness. 

Whitehall is at the head of Lake Champlain; 219 miles 
north of New York, 78 from Albany. As we break through 
the ledges and approach from the south, the valley spreads 
out toward the east in a fertile plain ; at the right, toward the 
north, is quite a mountain, girded with outcropping ledges 
that run up from the east at an angle of about thirty degrees, 
and are broken off precipitously on the west ; all along this 
front, houses cling one above another like rows of martins* 
boxes, and wooden stairways run zigzag up the sides, which, 
if bought by the acre, would bring the most measured per- 
pendicularly. Climbing the stairway we look down on the 
business portion of the village, close, compact and city-like 
below and thinning out gradually up the hill on the west. 
Going still higher, a pathway is found leading to the summit 
which is comparatively clear and affords a wonderfully fine 
mountain view for a little exertion. 

Whitehall was originally called Skeenesborough, after Col 
Philip Skeene, who accompanied Abercrombie in 1758 ; wa« 
wounded in his attack on Ticonderoga and, after Amherst's 
victorious advance in the following year, was appointed com- 
mandant at Crown Point, at which time he projected the set- 
tlement In 1765, he obtained a grant of the township and, 
in 1770, took up his residence here. On the breaking out ot 
the Revolution he took sides with the Royalists, accompanied 
Burgoyne in his expedition against Ticonderoga and was 
captured with him at Saratoga ; his property was confiscated 
by act of Legislature in 1779. 

Wood Creek, that fi-om its very head, has flown sleepily 
along, seems to have awakened suddenly and with a quick 
start, a joyous little run, a little foam and a little racket 
plunges over the rocks, and dies out in the muddy Iak« mt 



1 8 The Adirondacks. 

our feet. Close to the falls the canal boats and small steam- 
ere come, and line the banks of the bayou-like lake that leads 
away to the north through what seems a basin scooped out 
of the mountains, its marshy bed filled here and there with 
pieces of " made " land on which are steam mills, and long 
piles of lumber, representing the principal business of the 
place. 

At Whitehall, the train divides, — a part going east and north 
via Castleton and Rutland, the remainder north, down along 
the principal street, through the tunnel, out at the north edge 
of the village to the lumber district, and across the marsh- 
bottomed basin toward a notch cut out of its farther rim. 

Just before entering the rock-cut alluded to, we see on the 
cast a short double crook, in the narrow channel, known as 
the Fiddler's Elbow, where the large steamers were com- 
pelled to send a line ashore and " warp " round into a proper 
position to proceed; here, under water, are the hulks of some 
of the vessels engaged in the battle of Plattsburgh, in 1814. 
On the high point of rocks just over and slightly to the north 
of the Elbow is Fort Putnam, where the old colonial general, 
— Israel — ^lay in ambush, waiting for the French and Indians 
under the command of Marin. 

The steamboat dock, formerly the northern terminus of the 
road, with its half-demolished sheds and old elevator, is, par- 
adoxically speaking, left on the right as the train skims over 
the surface of the marsh on the long trestle, straight as the 
arrow flies, for over a mile, and over the draw at the outlet 
of South bay, along which Dieskau led his men to attack 1! 
Fort Edward, failing in which they turned toward Lake 
George and fell in with Col. Williams on that memorable 
8th of September, 1755. 1 

Winding in and out we continue along the west shore I 
breaking through rocky points and cuts, where the clay has 
been sliced down and removed like huge chunks of cheese, I 
revealing on their face horizontal strata that must at some ™ 
time have been the bed of the lake. On the east, at inter- 
vals, are the odd, little light houses and posts where lanterns 
were hung to mark the tortuous channel. Low reedy islands 



TiCONDEROGA. I9 

and points float outward from the shores, sluC the grand, 
rocky gateways opening up as we advance, revea3 vistas of 
wondrous beauty, strips of far-reaching water, and the blue 
of distant mountain peaks. Between the solid points we 
cross on trestle work or made land, and which same openings 
have proved a delusion and a snare to the unfortunate con 
tractor doomed to wrestle with them. 

Twenty-two miles from Whitehall, our rope of travel is 
divided in three strands, the one at the left branching off 
around Mount Defiance to the foot of Lake George, the mid- 
dle continuing on by rail along the west shore, and the remain- 
ing one proceeding in nearly the same direction by steamboat, 
touching at the principal points by the way.* 

Fort Ticonderoga is 24 miles from Whitehall on a bold 
promontory between the waters of Lake Champkin and the 
outlet of Lake George. 

Here were enacted the principal events in the play of the 
.ako ; here savage tribes contended for the country on either 
nand ; here three great nations struggled for the prize ol a 
continent, and precious blood flowed like water for this, the 
key to the "gate of the country," by its position elected to 
become historic ground ; as such, let us glance briefly in 
passing. 

Claimed by the Hurons and Algonquins on the north, and 
the Five Nations, on the south, Lake Champlain was perma« 
nently occupied by neither, but the gateway between two 
sections that were continually at war with each other, the 
bloody middle ground over which each party in its turn swept 
carrying ruin in its path. This had driven all who would 
have occupied it beyond the mountains, and the lovely shores 
remained in unbroken solitude. Thus Champlain found it 
when, in July, 1609, he sailed south with the Indians from 
the St. Lawrence to make war upon their southern enemies, 
and "encountered a war pariy of the Iroquois on the 29th of 
the month, about ten o'clock v^t night, at the point of a cape 
irhich puts out into the lake ou the west side." They each 
retired until the morning, when a battle ensued Champlair 



20 IHB ADIRONDACKS. 

was kept out of sight until they marched to the attack. Ht 
says: "Ours commenced, calling me in a loud voice, and, 
making way for me, opened in two and placed me at theii 
head, marching about twenty paces in advance until I was 
within thirty paces of the enemy." 

•• The moment they saw me they halted, gazing at me and 
I at them. When I saw them preparing to shoot at us, 1 
raised my arquebus, and aiming directly at one of the three 
chiefs, two of them fell to the ground by this shot, and one ol 
their companions received a wound, of which he died after- 
ward. I had put four balls in my arquebus. Ours, in witness- 
ing a shot so favorable to them, set up such tremendous 
shouts that thunder could not have been heard ; and yet there 
was no lack of arrows on one side and the other. The Iro- 
quois were greatly astonished, seeing two men killed so 
instantaneously, notwithstanding they were provided with 
arrow-proof armor, woven of cotton-thread and wood. ♦ ♦ • 
They lost courage, took to flight, and abandoned the field and 
their fort, hiding themselves in the depths of the forests, 
whither pursuing them I killed some others. ♦ ♦ ♦ Th« 
place where the battle was fought is 43 degrees some minutes 
latitude, and I named it Lake Champlain."* Ticonderoga is 
i3^ degrees north latitude and probably the cape referred to 
•which puts out into the lake on the west side." 

The French claimed the country by virtue of Champlain't 
discovery, and in 1731, while at peace with Great Britain, the^f 
advanced to Crown Point and erected Fort St Frederick. 

The English claimed this territory by right of purchase and 
treaty with the Five Nations, and feeling that something 
must be done to prevent further encroachments of the French 
on British soil. General Johnson was sent, in 1755, to drive 
them away, going by way of Lake George, where he halted 
for a few days, when Baron Dieskau made a dash around 
French mountain, defeated Col. Williams' party and attacked 
the main army, in which he was defeated. He then returned 
to Ticonderoga and began the erection of a fort which he 
cal»»d " CarilUm:* 

* Documentary History of New York. 

+ Dr. G. F. Bixby, whcse refearches among historical matters relatirg to the 
Champlain Vallty lias made him an authority, in a paper read before the N. Y. 
State Hi&lorical Society in 1839, brought evidence to show that " the cape " re- 
ferred to by Champlain is the one on which Crown Point ruins now stand. The 
evidence was accepted by the Society as congiusive. 



TiCONDEROGA. 2 1 

in 1757, it was occupied by Montcalm, who marched thence 
to the capture of Fort William Henry. 

In 1758, Abercrombie made his unsuccessful attack on the 
Did French lines, which resulted in his total defeat, with a 
loss of nearly 2,000 killed and wounded. 

The following year Amherst entrenched before the lines, 
and the French, feeling that they could not successfully resist 
him, abandoned and set fire to the works, which the English 
took possession of in the morning. They then advanced on 
Fort St. Frederick, the French retreating down the lake ; their 
hold on Champlain gone forever. 

Amherst repaired and enlarged the works at Ticonderoga 
tad Crown Point, on a scale of great magnificence, but never 
a shot from the frowning embrasures was directed against an 
approaching foe. Peace between the nations soon followed 
and the forts were allowed to fall into a state of ill repair and 
were poorly garrisoned when the revolution broke out. 
Crown Point had only a sergeant and 12 men and Ticon- 
deroga 50 men all told, when in the gray of the morn- 
ing of the loth of May, 1775, Ethan Allen and 83 of his 
"Green Mountain boys," stole in through the wicket gate 
and demanded its surrender '* in the name of the Great 
Jehovah and the Continental Congress." Crown Point was 
on the same day taken possession of by a party of Allen's 
men under Seth Warner, and soon after a sloop of war was 
captured by Benedict Arnold, by which the colonists gained 
command of the lake. 

The following year Arnold, in command of a small flotilla, 
was defeated near the Four Brothers' islands by General Carl- 
ton, who advanced as far south as Crown Point, then retired 
into Canada. 

In 1777 there came sweeping from the north the conceited, 
the pompous, the brilliant Burgoyne with 7,500 men and laid 
siege to Ticonderoga. St. Clair, then in command had barely 
sufficient troops to man the principal works, and when the 
English took possession of Mount Defiance, from which they 
could drop shot right over into the fort, he decided to aban- 
don it and did so on the night of July 4th ; all the stores that 
could be taken were removed, guns were spiked and at mid- 



22 



The Adirondacks. 



night a dusky throng moved away across the chain bridge 
Unfortunately for the Americans, a house on Mount Inde- 
pendence was set on fire and the light revealed the fugitive 
army to the watchful enemy, who immediately pursued. The 
greater part retreated toward Castleton and were followed, en- 
gaged and beaten ; the English, however, suffered terribly, it 
is said, losing ten to one of the Yankees. The rest moving 
up the lake toward Whitehall were pursued by the British 
who broke through the chain bridge and reaching the head 
of the lake almost as soon as they, captured most of the 
stores and ammunition, the men retreating to Fort Ann ; after 
this Burgoyne moved south to Saratoga, where his march ol 
triumph was changed to one of defeat, for he found the 
Gates too strong for him to pass. 

After*' Saratoga " the British retired into Canada, but in 1780 
the old fort was again occupied by the troops under General 
Haldiman, at which time occurred those bloodless battles ol 
diplomacy, where Allen plotted treason with such con- 
summate sagacity, that his country's enemies rested on their 
arms and •' peace reigned throughout her borders." 

Then came another enemy, silent, but resistless as the 
march of time. Rain and sunshine, frosts to rack and tem> 
pests to beat upon the old walls, until they totter and fall 
away, disappearing, one by one, and pointing to the time 
when naught shall remain but the name it bears, and that 
uncertain in the mists of the past. 

" TicoNDEROGA " ♦ — the generally accepted extract and 
boiled down result of over a dozen different Indian names, 
all, however, having something the same sound — as Tiendi* 
roga, Cheonderoga — meant to them the coming together ^ or 
meeting of waters,i instead of the generally accepted version 
of " Sounding waters." 

Carillon, the name given it by the French, meaning music, 
racket, a chime, may have been suggested by the " Sounding 
waters " near by. 

The old battery on the bluff, at the steamboat landing, it 



♦ C«ldM, i9«». FowaaO, trr*» 



Crown Point. 23 

said to have been the original Carillon. Back on the higher 
ground are the barrack walls, trenches, two bastions, and the 
best preserved portion of the ruins — a bomb-proof room, 
which some people say was the magazine, while other author- 
ities contend that it was the humble but equally necessary 
bakery. On the east, by the side of the road, is the old fort 
well. Leading from the south-east corner of the parade to- 
ward this, is the covered way, through which Ethan Allen 
went in the gray of the morning, in 1775. On the west is 
Mount Defiance. Between it and the fort the outlet of Lake 
George enters Lake Champlain. Opposite the point at the 
south-east, the lake is narrowed down by the near approach 
of Mount Independence, which was also fortified while St. 
Clair held command. Between the two points ran the chain 
or floating bridge. 

The lake here turns toward the'north, thus washing three 
sides of the promontory. Among the oaks, just west of the 
tunnel, is the old French lines, reaching over the ridge and 
nearly across the peninsula. The trenches and embankments 
are clearly defined, as are also the outlines of several re- 
doubts, cast up at about the same date. Across the locust- 
covered flat, just north of the ruins, from a point near the 
drawbridge, lay Ethan Allen's- route in 1775; and on the 
plain, near Addison Junction, according to the best author- 
ities, occurred the encounter between Champlain's party and 
the Iroquois. 

Crown Point is n miles north of Ticonderoga. Here, 
on the shore, are the furnaces of the 
Crown Point Iron Company, and the ter- 
minus of a narrow-gauge railway, which 
extends back 13 miles to iron mines at 
Hammondville, 1,300 feet above the lake. 
Thence, by stage, to Schroon Lake. 




24 



The Adirondacks. 



Crown Point Ruins are about six miles north of Crown 
Point landing. The lake is here narrowed down by the land 
extending from the west on which the ruins stand, its point 
marked by a stone light-house, Chimney Point approaches 
from the east side. Beyond the light-house, at the narrowest 
place in the passage, are the scarcely visible remains of Fort 
St. Frederick, built by the French in 1731. This point be- 
came a noted trading post, where the savages came to ex- 
change peltry for civilized fire-water and other necessaries. 
Under the protecting guns of the old fort it developed into a 
village of 1,500 inhabitants, the remains of lines of cellars and 
flagged walks, extending back toward the west, still showing 
signs of its old-time prosperity. 

The ruins of Crown Point proper are seen farther over at 
the west, as the boat passes through the narrow opening to 
the broad lake. It was commenced by Amherst in 1759, and 
completed at an expense of over ten million dollars. The 
extensive earth-works, and the walls of the barracks, still in a 
good state of preservation, indicate the strength and extent of 
the fortification, from which, however, no gun was ever fired 
at an approaching foe. Dr. Bixby designates the shore of the 
peninsula west of the ruins as the probable site of Champlain's 
battle with the Iroquois in 1609, given in the explorer's own 
words on page 14. 

Fort Frederick (landing) is just north of the light-house. 
A board walk extends from the dock back to the ruins. Re- 
freshment rooms, a public pavilion, etc., have been built here 
by the Champlain Transportation Company, for accomodation 
and entertainment of excursion parties that may land here. 

Port Henry, two miles north-west of Crown Point Ruins 
is exceedingly picturesque, 
with a number of elegant 
private residences, occu- 
pied by the iron magnates 
of that section. 

The Lake Champlain and Moriah R. R. is seven miles 
^ng, extending from Port Henry to the ore beds at Alineville, 




Westport. 



25 



1,300 feet above. The grade at one point is 256 J^ feet to the 
mile. The average is 211 feet. It contains three *' Y's," 
where the nature of the ascent renders a curve impracticable. 
Mineville is the centre of the mining operations of the region, 
and is a wonderful revelation to the novice in mining scenes. 
The Chever Ore Bed is two miles north of Port Henry, near 
the lake shore. 

The Y. M. C. A. of Albany has a small camp on Cole's 
Island about a mile south of the Barber Point Light House — 
the summer rendezvous of a large number of Association men 
and boys, who "rough it" in the most approved style under 
the general supervision of Frank W. Ober, the genial General 
Secretary, and the particular care of " Dug " Dunning, guide 
and hunter. Their accommodations consist of an open camp 
where they sleep at night, plentifully supplied with blankets, 
with other accessories to make them comfortable in this out-of 
door life. Three general regulations apply : Implicit obedi 
ence to leader and rules, attendance at Bible study, quiet at 
TOP. M. The days are spent in fishing and boating excursions 
to various parts of the lake. They are a jolly lot, and wel 
come visitors with right good will. 

Westport is a pretty little village, on a deep bay, setting 
into the western 
shore, fifty miles 
north of Whitehall. 
It is the natural 
gateway into the 
mountains, via Eliz- 
abethtown and 
Keene Valley (see page 149), and possesses attractions of its 
own that recommend it strongly to the summer visitor. 

The Pleasant View House, at the depot, affords a con- 
venient stopping place for parties arriving by night trains. 
Capacity 30. Rates about $2 per day. 

The Gibb's House, formerly the Richard's House, is now 
under the management of J. Nelson Gibbs. It is situated in 



\tN«>, 



AM« S\ 



-^^ 



rs*-^ 



;^^^ 






0<^ 



M 












Westport. 27 

the northern part of the village overlooking the lake,-and af- 
fords comfortable accommodations at a moderate price. 

The Westport Inn stands on the brow of an abrupt emi- 
nence a hundred feet above the lakes, and overlooks a tennis 
lawn shaded by fine elms, the picturesque steamboat landing, 
the great sweeping amphitheatre of hillsides leading away to 
right and left, the circling shore of the bay and the beautiful 
chain of the Green Mountains across in Vermont. The house 
is very attractive. It has broad piazzas, is neat and thoroughly 
well furnished, has pleasant parlors and a fine airy dining-room, 
with a large open fireplace. The table is spoken of in the 
highest terms of praise, and the service most efficient. There 
are bath rooms, a pure water supply and perfect drainage. 
During the coming season water will be introduced from a 
wonderful mountain spring 500 feet above the lake. There 
is a livery stable under the patronage of the house, and the 
picturesque drives offer great variety with ever-varying change 
of scene. The situation also offers the usual boating and 
fishing facilities, with a small steamer suitable for excursions. 
Bathing places with good bottom and convenient bath houses 
are there ; a circulating library. Post Oflfice and telegraph of- 
fice are near by. There are accommodations in the " Inn,' 
the "Annex" and the three cottages for 150 guests. It con- 
tinues under the skillful management of Mrs. O. C. Daniell, 
assisted by Mrs. H. C. Lyon. Rates, $3.00 per day. By the 
week they vary from $10.00 to $21,00. 

Steamer Chateaugay, Capt. Baldwin, leaves Westport at 
7 A. M. daily, Sundays excepted, and touching at Cedar Beach, 
Essex, Burlington, Port Kent, Bluff Point, Plaltsburgh, Gor- 
don's and Adams', reaches North Hero at 12:20; returning, 
touches as above, and arrives at Westport 6:45. 

This boat belongs to the C. T. Co., and was launched at 
Shelburn Harbor November 1, 1887. It is 203 feet long, 
and 59 feet wide over all. Water line, 195 feet; beam, 30 
feet. The hull is of rolled steel plates, made from Chateau- 
gay ore, with a wrought iron frame, braced in the most sub- 
stantial manner, and provided with water-tight compartments. 



28 The Adirondacks. 

The engine is a vertical beam, jet condensing engine, 44-inch |! 
cylinder, 10 foot stroke. The paddle-wheels are of the new 
*' feathering " pattern, 23 feet in diameter. The boat draws 
four and a half feet of water, and will make 20 miles an hour. 

Steamer Vermont, Captain Rushlow, is of the same line, 
is a graceful vessel, designed specially for pleasure travel. 
This boat leaves Plattsburgh at 7 a. m., touches at Bluff 
Point, Port Kent, Burlington, Westport, Port Henry, Fort 
Frederick and Crown Point, and reaches Fort Ticonderoga 
about noon, connecting there with trains for the south and for 
the steamer on Lake George, returning over the same route 
reaches Plattsburgh about 7 p. m. Steamboat and railroad 
tickets are interchangeable between Ticonderoga and Platts- 
burgh. 

The " Water Lily," a small steamer, runs from Westport 
to Vergennes daily on arrival of steamer Vermont from the 
south, returning in the morning to connect with the south- 
bound boat. The Water Lily is notable among steamboats 
as having a lady at the wheel, in the person of Mrs. Captain 
Daniels, who is said to be the first and only regularly licensed 

lady pilot in the United States. 

******* 

Calamity Point is on the west, about two miles north of 
Westport. Here the steamer Champlain was wrecked in 
1875 while running north on her regular night trip. The im- 
mediate cause of the disaster has never been explained, as 
the night was no more than ordinarily dark, but since that 
time, day or night, when running, the pilot houses of the sis- 
ter boats invariably contain two competent men. Captain 
Rushlow of the Vermont was then in command of the Cham- 
plain, and it was due to his cool self-possession that no panic 
ensued to lead to loss of life. 

Split Rock Mountain extends along the west shore ter- 
minating in a sharp point 8 miles north of Westport. Barn 
Rock (a corruption probably of Barren Rock) shows the up- 
turned edges of strata lying at a sharp angle with the surface 



Split Rock. 29 

in a bold point enclosing a deep harbor. " The Palisades," a 
little way north, are grand perpendicular cliffs. Rock Harbor, 
a mile further north, shows an " effort," where Gotham's ex- 
Boss Tweed, tried his hand at digging ore. Grog Harbor — a 
charming little cove despite its name — is near the northern 



end of the mountain. 




SPLIT ROCK FROM THB NORTH. 

1 Grand View Mt., Vt.; 2 Split Rock Light ; 3 Split Rock ; 4 Whalon's Bay, 

Split Rock is at the northern termination of the mountain 
bearing the same name. In the uncertain records of old In- 
dian treaties, it is claimed that this rock marked the line be- 
tween the tribes of the St. Lawrence and those of the Mo- 
hawk Valley. 

Otter Creek enters the lake from the east something over 
five miles north of Westport. This is the longest river in 
Vermont and is navigable to Vergennes whose spires may be 
seen some distance inland. Fort Cassin stood at the mouth 
of Otter Creek, bits of the works are still visible. Within the 
creek a portion of the American squadron was fitted out in 
18 1 4, which under Commodore McDonough defeated the 
British Commodore Downie, at Plattsburgh, in September of 
that year. 

Vergennes is eight miles back from the lake, as Otter 
Creek runs, although in an air line but little more than half 
that distance. It is one of the oldest cities in New England, 
dating its organization back to 1789. It is also the smallest 
incorporated city in the country. The Stevens House has 
accommodations for about loo guests. Board 88.00 to $12.00 
per week. S. S. Gaines proprietor. 

Essex is a small village on the west shore, 10 miles north of 
Westport. The Boquet river empties into the lake four miles 



30 The Adirondacks. 

north of Essex landing. It is navigable for about a mile. It 
was a rendezvous of Burgoyne's flotilla in the advance on Ti- 
conderoga, in 1777, and in 18 12 was entered by British gun- 
boats to work the destruction of the little village of Wills- 
borough, a mile inland. 

WiLLSBORouGH PoiNT is the northern extremity of a low 
peninsula about four miles long by one wide, separating Wills- 
borough Bay from the main lake. 

The Willsborough with capacity for 60 guests stands here. 
J. Henry Otis, proprietor. Rates $3.00 per day; $12.00 to 
$18.00 per week. Open June to October. Railroad station 
is Willsborough, five miles distant at the south. Fare by 
house carriage 75 cents. 

The American Canoe Association holds its annual meet 
this year on the north end of Willsborough Point, opening 
August 6th, and continuing three weeks. It is an Interna- 
tional organization with a membership of something over a 
thousand, composed largely of literary and professional men 
from all parts of North America. The Association is bound 
by a code of rules that keeps i t free from 
what may be termed " professionalism." Its 
official organs are '^ Forest and Stream " and 
" Sail and Paddle'^ The initiation fee is 
one dollar, annual dues one dollar. Waher 
U. Lawson, of Boston, is Commodore, and 
Ralph F. Brazer, of Lowell, Mass., Secre- 
tary and Treasurer. 
The Association is divided into four divisions, Eastern, 
Northern, Atlantic and Southern. C. V. Winne, of the D. & 
H. R. R. is Vice-Commodore, and W. Howard Brown, of Al- 
bany, Purser of the Central Division, in whose jurisdiction 
the Meet is held this year. The A. C. A. was organized at 
Lake George in 1880, and has met annually since that time 
at Lake George and other places. There are a number of 
lady members of the Association and their camp is always 
an interesting feature of the Meet. The entire camp is 




Burlington. 31 

under strict police surveillance. Strangers are not allowed 
on the grounds except under certain restrictions and on regu- 
lar visitors' day, at which time it is intended that some of the 
most interesting events of the Meet shall transpire. 

The Four Brothers are near the middle of the lake, east of 
Willsborough Point. Here occured the running engagement 
between Benedict Arnold and Captain Pringle, in 1776, in 
which the English were victorious. Juniper Island is north- 
east of the Brothers, with high, almost vertical walls, sur- 
mounted by a lighthouse. 

After leaving Essex Landing the boat passes out into the 
broadening lake, gradually nearing the Vermont side in the ap- 
proach to Burlington. Back inland are the two highest peaks 
of the Green Mountains — Mansfield, 4,360 feet above tide 
and Camel's Hump, the Leo?i Couchant of the French. 

Shelburn Farm, the summer place of Dr. W. Seward Webb, 
is on the east shore. North extends Shelburne peninsula 
terminating in Pottier's Point. 

Shelburne Harbor is east of Pottier's Point. Here are the 
shipyards of the Champlain Transportation Company. It is 
worthy of note that but one year after Robert Fulton's steam- 
boat was launched on the Hudson River a steamboat was built 
and launched at Burlington. It could run five miles an hour 
without heating the shaft. 

Rock Dundar is a prominent object, as we near Burlington; 
it is a sharp cone about 20 feet high, believed by Winslow C. 
Watson, the historian, to be the famous "RockRegio" so 
frequently mentioned in colonial records. 

Burlington is a city of nearly 15,000 inhabitants. It is 
one of the largest lumber marts in the country, standing 
fourth in the order of business. The firm represents a capital 
of $4,000,000.00. One hundred and fifty million feet of lum- 
ber are sold annually from this market. The Champlain 
Transportation Company has its general ofiice here. The 
Lake Champlain Yacht Club has an elegant club house a little 
way north of the steamboat landing. • 



52 



The Adirondacks. 



Among public buildings of note are The University of 
Vermont, the Medical College, Billings Library Building, 
Vermont Episcopal Institute, St. Joseph's College, Park 
Gallery of Art, Fletcher Free Library, Mary Fletcher Hos- 
pital, and The Young Men's Christian Association building. 

On the high land back of the city, overlooking Winooski 
Valley, in the Green Mountain Cemetery, lies the body of 
Vermont's famous son, Ethan Allen. A monument of Barre 
granite, 50 feet in height, surmounted by a statue of Allen, 
marks the spot. 

Hotels. Hotel Burhngton, a new house, capacity 100, 
rates, $2.00 and $2.50 per day, $10.50 to $15.00 per week, 
Delaney & Harrington, proprietors. The Van Ness and 
American Houses, rates, $3.00 to $3.50 per day. L. S. Drew 
and H. N. Clark, managers. 

Port Kent is 10 miles from Burlington, the steamer 
running almost due northwest from the latter point and veer- 
ing only slightly from its course to pass around Trembleau 
Point. Below, the town is not very attractive; but above, 

along the brow of the 
hill, are several very 
pleasant, comfortable- 
looking houses. 
Among them is the 
old home of Elkanah 
Watson, whose ac- 



Fifures thswodilanc? from GatCKar 




count of travefs in 1777 contains the best record we have of 
the towns and villages at that period. The house may be 
identified by the tall columns along its front. 

Au Sable Chasm, three miles distant, is reached from Port 
Kent over the new K., A. C. &L. C. R. R., which crosses over 
just below Rainbow Falls, to Au Sable Chasm Station, and 
continues along the west side of the river to Keeseville, for 
which see page 44. 




CHAPTER IV. 

Au Sable Chasm. 

U SABLE CHASM is the Yosemite in 
miniature. The Au Sable River, coming 
out from the mountains of the south, 
through the valley past Keeseville, breaks, 
after many a rush and tumble, over the 
rocks into Au Sable Chasm, in the beauti- 
ful Rainbow Falls, then hurrying downward 
through devious ways, creeping under 
towering cliffs, resting in dark places where 
the sun never shines, finally emerges from 
the gloom into the broad willowy way to 
mingle later, after many twists and turns, 
with the quiet waters of Lake Champlain. 

It is a vast fissure in the Earth's surface, its walls, that now 
stand apart, were apparently united and solid in the past ; pro- 
jections on the one side are faced by corresponding depressions 
on the other ; strata, broken off here are continued over there. 
Low down are found petrified specimens of the first orders of 
animal life and ripple marks made whea the rock was in its 
plastic state — the bed of some lake or ocean — and above 
these, in successive layers, towers nearly a hundred feet of 
solid rock. 

Who can say what ages have passed away since the restless 
sea beat upon this unknown shore and left the marks of its 
wavelets for us to wonder at ? Thought is lost away back in 
the eternity of " The Beginning " when darkness was upon the 
face of the deep. Later came the dawn of Creation, and in 
its full light the lowest of animal creatures lived their brief day 




The Grand Flume. 



Au Sable Chasm. 35 

and added their mite to old Ocean's bottom. Long ages rolled 
away, and floods swept over the uneasy world that reeled and 
staggered with the pulsations of its heart of fire. The thin 
shell bubbled up into mountain ridges and broke like crackle 
glass, then, cooling, left its marks in ragged heights and fear- 
ful depths. Then came great icebergs, grinding the uplifted 
points to atoms in their course, polishing, leveling and filling 
up the openings. Then the water fled away, leaving the 
seams and cracks filled with the rich alluvium gathered in 
passing centuries, holding in its bosom the germs of vegetable 
life that in time covered all with a mantle of green. The 
yearly rains descended, and floods swept down from the moun- 
tains above, washing outward the loose deposit that had filled 
the great crevices, and revealed this wonderland of " The 
Walled Banks of the Au Sable." 

Au Sable Chasm had been of local interest for years, but 
was little known outside until about 1873, when a couple of 
Philadelphians, to whose attention it had been called, acquired 
possession, and built stairways, galleries and bridges, which, 
with the aid of boats near the lower end, enabled visitors to 
pass through its entire length. In 1879, the wooden galleries 
were replaced by stone walks with substantial iron railings, 
bridges were erected above high water mark or made movable, 
so as to be taken up at the close of the season and put back in 
the spring, and new boats were placed in the navigable waters 
below Table Rock, to carry visitors through the otherwise 
inaccessible portions. An admission fee is charged according 
to circumstances. Large parties are admitted at reduced rates. 
Permanent guests of the Lake View House are admitted free, 
as the hotel and Chasm are both under one management. 

The Lake View House stands on the high land over- 
looking the head of the Gorge, Rainbow Falls and the little 
hamlet of Au Sable Chasm. The village of Keeseville is some- 
thing over a mile distant. Farther west is seen the sharp out- 
line of Whiteface Mountain. Towards the east, field and 
forest unite in one broad, grand slope to the shores of Cham- 
plain. 



Au Sable Chasm. 37 

The house is four stories in height, with a tower lifted con- 
siderably higher, and an open platform on the roof, which 
gives the beholder a view, sublime in its extent and diversity. 
The main portion was built in 1874, added to in 1877, and 
again in 1879. The new part (not shown in the cut) being an 
extension of the first and second stories toward the north, 
giving a spacious-dining room and desirable sleeping apart- 
ments. Along this on the east is a broad piazza, giving a lake 
frontage of nearly two hundred feet. Connected with the 
principal sleeping-rooms are bath-rooms, closets, and other 
modern appliances for the comfort of guests. Water for 
general use and to guard against the accident of fire, is forced 
to the top of the building from the river below. The house 
is lighted with gas. An open pavilion on the west is one of 
the breeziest of lounging places imaginable. Southeast of the 
house are the billiard and bowHng alleys and stables. A 
livery is connected with the hotel, and telegraph and telephone 
wires enter the office. The house is furnished in a most com- 
plete and substantial manner, and the beds are of the best. 
The table is supplied with vegetables grown on the hotel farm. 
Altogether the place can be truthfully spoken of in high terms 
of praise. 

William H. Tracy is proprietor of the Lake View House.* 
Mr. Tracy's faculty of making friends and keeping them has 
brought him many guests, who contribute to his success by 
their continued patronage. That he is efficient and popular is 
proved beyond question. He will be assisted the present sea- 
son by Mr. Charles Fury, manager for two years past of the 
Interlaken at Augur Lake. The rates for board are $3 00 
per day, $10 50 to $21 00 per week. Lake View House car- 
riages meet all trains at the Chasm station. Stopover priv- 
ileges are granted travellers by the D. & H. R. R. to those 
who may wish to visit the Chasm. 

Passing from the Lake View House to the main road a few 
rods north, and descending the hill toward the west, the en- 
trance to the Chasm is reached. Admission is gained through 

♦As this book goes to press news comes that the Lake View House has been to- 
tally destroyed by fire. Plans of owner and management unknown. 







MORSESHOE FALLS. 



Au Sable Chasm. 



39 



" The Lodge." a picturesque building, octagonal in form pago- 
da-like, unique and attractive. Within will be found photo- 
graphs, books and curios pertaining to the place, and the most 
gracious of wardens who will show you down the steep stairs 
that lead through the cleft rock to the bottom. Before de- 
scending, note the queer effect the stained glass in the lodge 
windows gives to objects seen through them, where the blue 
makes frosty winter, and the red the most insufferable of sum- 
mers of the same objects. 

Rainbow Falls, at the head of the chasm, flings its mass of 
water from nearly 70 feet above into the gulf below, and from 
an equal height, when the conditions are right, a stream like a 
great waterspout is thrown away out over head from the flume 
of the works above. Horse Shoe Falls is nearly opposite the 
entrance. Note its suggestive shape from the lookout, before 
descending the stairs. 

Pulpit Rock faces us as we approach the Elbow, which is 
the first turn below the entrance. Split Rock shows on the 
left at the farthest point visible as you turn around the Elbow. 
The rock which stands at the left of the opening made by the 
splitting off of a large fallen mass is called the Elephant's 
Head, and with the morning sun hghting up the massive 
front, the name does not seem inappropriate. 

Stop when you reach the end of the bridge that crosses 
here. The Devil's Oven is in the wall which shuts off our 
farther advance on the right of the stream. Why " Oven " is 
not so clear, for if you climb the rough rocks and enter its 30 
feet of depth, you will not find it the superheated place sug- 
gested, but rather the reverse. The same trophical imagina- 
tion that conceived of this and some of the other names ap- 
phed to places here, gave to the narrow passage-way at our 
feet the name of Hell Gate, and looking, one does not really 
wonder at the fancy. From Hell Gate rising in a great sweep 
heavenward, away from the rushing waters, is Jacob's Ladder. 

Across the bridge we go, around the rocky abutment toward 
the left, clinging perhaps to the iron railing which prevents 
our sliding into the water below, beneath overhanging rocks, 



Au Sable Chasm. 41 

over the seething water, across the bridge which spans the 
Devil's Punch-Bowl — pausing perhaps to glance into the green 
depths of the Fernery at our left — down across the worn 
rocks, then zig-zag up the side to a higher level. Here is one 
of the most remarkable specimens of rock boring in the coun- 
try, called Jacob's Well, showing where some vagrant stone, 
caught perhaps in an eddy when the stream ran here, and 
whirled about continually, ground its way down through the 
strata of soft rock, until it wore itself out in vain beatings 
against its prison walls. Here a bridge crosses Mystic Gorge, 
to the Long Gallery beyond which, descending, we come to 
Point of Rocks. Note high up the sides of those rocks the 
segments of a large bowl similar to Jacob's Well, and back- 
ward the rapids which, seen from this point, in the sunshine at 
noon are very beautiful. Opposite this point is Hyde's Cave, 
named after a venturesome individual who, in 187 1, let him- 
self down by a ropp from the rocks above and was the first to 
reach its dual entrance. Below the bridge, which leads to 
Hyde's Cave, on the same side of the stream, is Bixby's 
Grotto. 

Returning to the north shore, Smuggler's Pass, directly op- 
posite the Grotto, is crossed by a bridge. You may follow 
along the ledge if you like and lose yourself from sight where, 
back from the river, this passage winds into quite a large 
chamber. More stairways are found as we proceed, then 
comes the Post Office. This post office has neither Post Mas- 
ter nor distinguishing name in the postal department, but 
nevertheless does a large business, pecuharly its own, as the 
observant visitor will notice. No charge is made here for 
drop-letter or cards and many avail themselves of the privilege. 

Clinging close to the rocks protected by the iron railing we 
pass along high up at this point, then through the Hanging 
Garden, and, descending, cross to Table Rock. 

From the upper point of Table Rock look backward through 
the Upper Flume. See Column Rocks at the farthest visible 
point on the left, and, if the sun be right, notice the Altar- 
cloth hanging over the water at the right. Turning; the 



42 Au Sable Chasm. 

Anvil is before you, partially hidden perhaps, by the rustic 
canopy which has been built against it to afford shade for 
such as may care to take advantage of it when, for the two or 
three brief hours in the middle of the day, the sun pours its 
beams down into this open space. Back of the Anvil, Cathe- 
dral Rocks rise a hundred feet above the level floor, suggest- 
ing in their broken lines, some vast cathedral's ruined towers 
and aisles. ''The Sentinel" stands guard at the outer corner 
of Cathedral Rocks. 

Through a cleft in the lower edge of Table Rock we 
descend and enter the large batteaux found waiting here for 
the passage through the Grand Flume and beyond. Do not 
fear, for these boats are strong and serviceable to withstand 
the hard knocks they get at times, and in charge of stalwart 
boatmen who will guide us safely through the exciting passage 
below. The Grand Flume reaches from Table Rock for 
some distance down. Here the water runs straight away, shut in 
by walls that rise perpendicularly up for more than a hundred 
feet, while the dip of the rock-strata on either side gives one 
the queer sensation of running down quite a steep hill. 

Here, at the narrowest place, the cliffs are scarcely ten feet 
apart and the sky above seems but a narrow ribbon of blue. 
The water seems to round up in the middle and actually to 
run on edge. No plummet has ever been found to sound ijts 
depths. Over this spot the main road crossed years ago and 
the place is spoken of now by the older inhabitants as " High 
Bridge." A story is told to the effect that when after a time 
the bridge was condemned and the plank taken off leaving 
only the naked log stringers stretched across, a horseman went 
over one dark and stormy night, unconscious of his danger at 
the time, although remembering afterward that as he ap- 
proached in the intense darkness, his horse had hesitated and 
when urged, moved forward in fear and trembling. 

The Lower Gate-Way ends the Long Flume and ushers us 
into the Pool. The Sentry Box is at the right as we emerge 
into the open space. On the left there is a larger creavasse in 
which, leaning, stands the Broken Needle. At the Pool, the 
river turns sharply to the left and leads downward over danc- 




THE SENTINEL. 



44 The Adirondacks. 

ing rapids where we go until, rounding to the right, we enter 
quiet water once more, and finally pass out into the basin 
where, at the landing, carriages are taken to convey us back to 
the hotel. 

It is well to have passed through Au Sable Chasm once in 
a life time. Such scenes make man realize the puny crea- 
ture that he is, for — in the somewhat stalwart language of 
Will Carleton : 

*' To appreciate Heaven well 

It is good for man to have some fifteen minutes of Hell." 

******* 

Photographs of the Chasm may be procured at the Lake 
View House, where large books, showing the series, are on 
exhibition. 

Stages leave the Lake View House for Lake Placid every 
morning, Sundays excepted, at 7 -.30. Fare, $4. 

The Chasm House is on the west side of the river, toward 
Keesville. It is a substantial-looking stone building, and 
affords accommodations for 25 guests. M. Whealon, pro- 
prietor. Rates, $2 per day, $10 to $14 per week. This 
house is open the year round. 

Keeseville is on the Au Sable River, four miles from Port 
Kent, and nearly two from Au Sable Chasm. It is one of the 
thriftiest and most enterprising little villages in the state. It 
contains a number of fine private residences and public edi- 
fices, built of the beautiful, creamy sandstone which underHes 
this section of the country. The water-power is utilized in the 
twine, wire, and iron manufactories, and by the Au Sable Horse- 
Nail Company, here, and at the Nail-Rod Works, on the 
road to Au Sable Chasm. It has numerous churches, a graded 
school, and a wide-awake weekly — the Essex County Republi- 
can — which keeps the pubUc in a healthy state of agitation. 

H. M. Mould, druggist and bookseller, supplies many 
things required in the woods — and the sportsman will do well 
to consult his needs before going into the farther country. 
Mr. Mould's assortment of things, ornamental and useful, is 
large and well chosen. 



Valcour Island. 45 

The Interlaken is at Augur Lake, a charming bit of wa- 
ter two and a half miles south of Keeseville. It is under the 
management of M. C. Fuller. The house is three stories 
high, with extensive verandas, and, as a concession to those 
who may fear fires, has inside and outside stairways for the 
upper floors. Accommodations are offered for about 100 
guests. The lake affords fine boating and fishing. Beyond 
the lake rise the rocky walls of Poke o' Moonshine and Bald- 
face mountains. At the south is the wild Poke o' Moonshine 
Pass, and near by is Augur Chasm, one of the many wonder- 
ful freaks of this section, in character like that of Au Sable 
Chasm. Connected with the house is an extensive farm, from 
which the table is supplied. In the immediate vicinity of the 
house are well-kept croquet and tennis grounds, and extensive 
pine groves are near by. A well-appointed stable affords the 
means of riding or driving at will. Special conveyance will 
meet guests at Keeseville on the arrival of trains if notice is 
sent in advance. Fare, 50 cents. Capacity 100. Rates are 
from $10 to $12 per week; $3 per day. Open June to No- 
vember. For particulars, address the manager, at Keeseville. 

Returning to the steamer, we see, three miles north of the 
landing at Port Kent, the sandy mouth of the Au -Sable River. 
'' Au Sable" means " a river of sand." A wooded depression 
in the ground above shows the course of the river. Across 
from this is the widest uninterrupted portion of the lake, being 
here nearly eleven miles wide. Measuring into Mallett's Bay, 
the distance is nearly thirteen miles. 

Valcour Island is about six miles north of Port Kent, the 
steamer passing between it and the main land on the west. 
Here, Oct. 11, 1776, occurred the first naval engagement of 
the Revolution, between the British, commanded by Captain 
Thomas Pringle, and the Americans under Benedict Arnold. 
The British plan was to send a fleet from the north to capture 
Ticonderoga and clear the way for a junction with the army of 



46 The Adtrondacks. 

the south, that should come by way of the Hudson. Early in 
the spring they began the construction] of ships at St. Johns, 
and the last of September the fleet, consisting of a three-masted 
vessel carrying eighteen guns, and two schooners with thirteen 
guns each, with smaller vessels — twenty-nine vessels in all, 
mounting eighty-nine guns, manned by picked seamen and 
practiced gunners — moved south to tlie attack. When it be- 
came known that preparations of this nature were in progress 
at St. John, Arnold was commissioned to construct vessels to 
oppose them, and massing all possible help and material at 
Skenesborough (now Whitehall), set about the work with tre- 
mendous energy, and in August put afloat a number of flat- 
bottomed sailing craft and row galleys, carrying altogether 84 
guns and 152 swivel-guns. The largest of these vessels was 
the ''Royal Savage," a two-masted schooner carrying fourteen 
guns. With this force Arnold sailed north, going as far as 
Windmill Point, then returning, took up a position in the nar- 
row channel between Valcour Island and the main land. 

The British fleet, running before the strong north wind, 
passed on the outside of the island and some distance beyond, 
before discovering the position of the Americans. So severe 
was the wind that the larger vessels could not be brought 
back to attack and only some of the smaller ones with the 
schooner Carleton finally succeeded in getting in position. 
The engagement continued most of the afternoon during 
which the "Royal Savage " was disabled, and drifting on the 
rocks was abandoned. During the night it was set on fire by 
the British and sunk. Portions of the hull can yet be seen 
when the water is still, resting on the bottom where it then 
went down. The attacking vessels were recalled and anchored 
in line at the south to cut off the retreat of the Americans. 
During the night however, the Americans slipped through the 
British line and in the morning were discovered making in- 
dustrious tracks toward the south and safety. The British 
pursuing, over-hauled Arnold near the Four Brothers and a 
running fight ensued which demonstrated the superiority of 



Battle of Valcour. 47 

the British vessels and gunners. The remnant of the Ameri- 
can boats, ahiiost disabled, was grounded in a bay on the 
Vermont shore near Panton and set on fire, and Arnold and 
his men made their way through the woods to Crown Point. 
In these engagements, although defeated, Arnold acquitted 
Jiimself in such a manner as to win the admiration of his 
enemies and the approval of his superior officers. Benedict 
Arnold was born in Norwich, Conn., Jan. 3d, 1 741, and died 
in London, June 14, 1801. As a youth, turbulent; as a 
soldier, ambitious, bold to rashness and jealous of his fellow 
officers; dishonest. The transition from discontented rebel to 
infamous traitor was easy. He was a brilliant commander? 
his fall was like that of Lucifer. 

Valcour Island was the spot selected for " A communal 
home, based on the principles of social science," where 
the "Dawn Valcour Community " dawned on the astonished 
world of 1874, grew into a mighty power (on paper), with 
" Col." John Wilcox to furnish the intellectual, and " Uncle " 
Owen Shipman the temporal home ; where congenial spirits 
were invited to commingle in promiscuity, but all too soon 
were on the ragged edge of individuality, while the musical 
auctioneer warbled over the odds and ends that remained to 
satisfy outside demands. In the words of one of its leading 
members, the thing "busted;" and the " Dawn" was merged 
into twilight, to furnish another lesson on the practicability of 
free love. 

Hotel Champlain, the superb, is seen on the bold head- 
land that puts out from the west shore just north or Valcour 
Island. It does not come upon you suddenly, as a revelation. 
You have seen it over the lake for miles back on your course,, 
before the steamer had touched at Burlington, perhaps, or from 
the car window as the reeling train swung around Trembleau 
Mountain nearly temmiles away, and at intervals ever since 
as the road wound in and out along the shore. Now, as you 
approach, its magnificient proportions come out in grand re- 
lief against the sky. 

"Commanding" is not misapplied here. The hotel stands 



48 







oji a height that breaks away abrtiptly in all directions for a 
space, then in gentler slope reaches the level of the lower 
shores north and south, the water on the east, and the valley 
toward the west wliere the trains of the D. & H. flash like 
gleaming shuttle tkrough the varj-tintecl web of cultivated 



HOTKT. Ch.\M1'I,.\(\. ^cj 

fields and cross-line roiintry roads. l'<^ng colonades; Ijroad 
piazzas conforming to the swelling contour of facing, east, 
south and west ; breezy porticos, and balconies hung along 
its sides or perched high upon tower and sharply sloping roof, 
give grace and lightness to the structure that rises above the 
tops of the trees crowning the rugged bluff. Distance gives 
to it the lightness of a castle built of straws, the closer view 
reveals it solid and substantial as the most realistic could 
wish. 

At a moderate elevation it commands in an unbroken 
circuit a panorama that for picturesque variety and beauty is 
equaled perhaps nowhere in the country. Having no near 
mountain heights to dwarf its own strong setting, it looks out 
from its own native wilderness over land and water diversified 
and changeful. It is restful, rather than overpowering with 
great heights and dismal depths. Right and left runs the 
valley with its checker-board of field and woodland ; its net- 
work ofroads; its quaint farm buildings gathered here and 
there in little knots that form hamlets and prosperous villages^ 
and beyond, hills rising into the ranges of the Adirondacks 
that stretch across, pointed at intervals with the grander 
mountain peaks. Towards the east a broad swath has been 
cut out through the green trees down to the water's edge, 
where busy life attends as the steamers come and go. Here 
gleam the beach of " The Singing Sands" circling in a broad 
belt toward the south, between the restless water and the thick 
growing cedars. Toward the north are perpendicular cliffs 
that attain quite a height — the bluffs which undoubtedly gave 
to the point its name. They are cleft asunder at one place 
and made memorable by the tradition of the White Squaw 
and the Bloody Hand that left its marks on the walls and 
later as the place where smugglers successfully landed their 
stores free from suspicion because of its seeming inaccessibility 
to those who were not in the secret. 

Valcour Island lies like a garden below, bordered with its 

varying belt of shrubbery. Beyond stretches the broad lake, 

! dotted here and there with islands, to the shores of Vermont 



50 



The Adirondacks. 



the Green Mountains beyond rising into the heights of Camel's 
Hump and Mount Mansfield. North and east are Grand Isle 
and the Great Back Bay; at the north Cumberland Head, 
the sweeping circle of Plattsburgh Bay, where occurred that 
splendid naval battle of 1814, the last, as the Battle of Val- 
cour was the first, with the mother country — and nearer, the 
little island where sleep the dead of that eventful day. 

Within the hotel is found everything that appertains to a — 
oh, much, and ill-used term — first-class house. Every modern 
appHance tending to the comfort of guests will be found here, 




D. & H. RAILROAD STATION. 



and that its management will be all which time and experi- 
ence has shown to be the most acceptable to the travelled 
public, may be confidently expected, for that prince of hotel- 
keepers, E. N. Wilson, of the Hotel Cordova, St. Augustine, 
Fla., is at its head. 

Excursions may be made by steamboat from this point 
south to Ticonderoga or north among the islands and on to 
the fishing grounds of the Lake. A fleet of boats, ranging 
from the light Whitehall skiff to the dainty little steam yacht, 
are here for charter. Drives are many and varied, and equip- 
pages here to suit all occasions. The distance from New 
York is 308 miles; fare, $8.05. To Montreal, 77 miles; fare 



Plattsburgh. 51 

$2.71. Quick and convenient train service will be main- 
tained throughout the season north and south. Trains on the 
Chateaugay Railroad leave in the morning, arriving at Saranac 
Lake and the various hotels reached by the Chateaugay Rail- 
road in time for dinner. 

Crar Island, some distance north of Valcour, is the burial 
place of the common sailors and marines who fell in the battle 
of Plattsburgh. North of this, and projecting well out across 
the lake, is Cumberland Head, from which the shore recedes 
toward the north and west, then comes back in a wide sweep, 
embracing the waters of Cumberland Bay. 

The Battle of Plattsburgh took place here in 18 14. 
Stripped of detail, the account of this decisive battle is as fol- 
lows : On a beautiful Sabbath morning, September nth, 1814, 
the American land forces under General McComb, and the 
American fleet under Commodore Macdonough, were simul- 
taneously attacked by the British land and water forces, under 
General Sir George Provost and Commodore Downie. The 
engagement resulted in a complete victory for the former, only 
a few small boats of the enemy effecting a successful retreat 
At the commencement of the naval engagement, the British* 
land forces, consisting of 14,000 infantry, advanced against 
the Americans, 3,000 strong, entrenched at points along the 
south bank of the river, but were repulsed with a loss of 2,500 
in killed, wounded and missing. They also lost immense 
stores, which were abandoned in their retreat — which served 
them right for breaking the Sabbath. The ruins of the old 
forts are to be seen on the south outskirts of the village. The 
largest — Fort Moreau — is in the centre, Fort Brown, on the 
bank of the river, and Fort Scott near the lake. This is a 
regular army post now. The barracks, about a mile south of 
the village, near the lake shore, built in 1838, are occupied by 
a company of soldiers belonging to the regular army. 

Plattsburgh is on the west shore of this bay, a thriving 
village of 8,000 inhabitants. It is of considerable commercial 
importance, being on the direct line between New York and 
Montreal, 311 miles from the former and 74 from the latter. 
It is the northern lerminus of the Au Sable (Branch) Rail- 



52 The Adirondacks. 

road, and from it the Chateaugay Railroad penetrates the 
mountains toward the west. Plattsburgh is thoroughly cosm.o- 
politan, with an opinion to offer on every question of the day, 
exerting no mean influence through its wide-awake news- 
papers, the, Daily Telegram, and the Sentinel 2^Vi^ Republicaji — 
the latter instituted in 1811, and, notwithstand its age, one of 
the most reliable and ably conducted democratic weeklies in 
the state. 

The first settler in this region was Count Charles de Freden- 
burgh, a captain in the English army. The warrant conveying 
the land to him bore date June 11, 1769. 

The property reverting to the state after the Revolution, 
was granted, in 1784, to Zephaniah Piatt and others, and in- 
corporated into the town of Plattsburgh, April 4, 1785. A 
company was then organized which, in June of the same year, 
erected a mill at Fredenburgh Falls. The estimate of ex- 
pense contained, among other items, the following : " For 
bread, $65 ; for rum $80." They used a great deal of bread 
in those days. 

In the year 1800 Plattsburgh was the county seat, its terri- 
tory extending from Lake George on the south to Canada 
and the St. Lawrence River on the north and west. The 
village then possessed a population of less than 300, and with- 
in the county limits were owned at this time 58 slaves. 

The Fouquet House is at the depot, and affords a con. 
venient stopping place for -narties arriving late or desiring to 
take an early train out. 

The Witherill House is near the post-office. It is 
elegant in its appointments, its pictures and decorations dis" 
playing a high degree of artistic taste. 

The Cumberland stands at the corner of Trinity Square. 
It is one of the oldest hotels, and has a large patronage. G. 
S. Corbin, an ex-railroad man, liberal and popular with the 
traveling public, is the proprietor. A free 'bus runs to and 
from all boats and trains, and ample time is given parties 
arriving on the sleeper from the south to get breakfast and a 
view of the surrounding country, if so inclined, before starting 



Pl.ATTSBURGH. 53 

up the Chateaugay Railroad for tlie interior. Rates, $2 per 
day ; $ i o to $ 1 2 per week. 

There is also an excellent restaurant in the depot, under 
railroad management. Here a good lunch can be had at a 
moderate price, or a comfortable meal during the twenty 
minutes usually given for that purpose between the arrival and 
departure of trains. 

In a private letter to the author, that enthusiastic sports- 
man, Dr. George F. Bixby, editor of the Plattsburgh Republican 
says : *' In the universal rush for the woods and waters of 
the Adirondacks, Lake Champlain has been shamefully over- 
looked ; here are islands which now appear in all their 
original beauty as when Champlain first saw them, the abode 
of eagles, so secluded are they, and here is better fishing, all 
the year round, than any other body of water in Northern 
New York can boast of; big hungry fish, voracious pike, 
huge black bass, as well as the nuiscallonge — that nearly 
extinct fish — the noblest and gamiest that swims, ready for 
the fisherman at all seasons. In their season, water fowl 
abound — enormous black ducks and wild geese, with smaller 
game in abundance. Lake Champlain is also, of late, attract- 
ing the attention of canoeists, yachtsmen (both steam and 
sail) and camping parties, on account of facility of access 
from the Hudson and St. Lawrence for all kinds of craft; 
hospitality of inhabitants ; pure air ; pure water ; delightful 
scenery, eligible camping grounds and abundant bases of sup- 
plies, all offering irresistible attraction to those unable to en- 
dure the fatigue incident to a lodge in the vast wilderness, or 
that other class who are ' constitutionally tired,' and to whom 
distance lends enchantment to the view of Adirondack peaks. 
To such I offer a word of advice — halt near the north end of 
the lake, in some of the comfortable homes, whose doors will 
be thrown open for a moderate consideration, or encamp be- 
neath the friendly shade of some island grove, where the 
punkies cease from troubling and the weary are at rest." 



54 The Adirondacks. 

Rouse's Point, according to the United States Coast 
Survey, is 107 miles north of "Whitehall. It is the most 
important port of entry on the frontier. Five railroads centre 
here, viz.f The D. & H., leading to New York, the O. & L. 
C, to Ogdensburg and the Thousand Islands, the Grand 
Trunk to Montreal, the Portland & Ogdensburg to the White 
Mountains, and the Central Vermont to Boston and the south- 
east. 

Hotel Windsor is on the lake shore a short distance south 
of the little village, far enough to be free from its bustle and 
removed entirely from the annoying sounds of traffic and con- 
fusion at the busy station. It commands a widely extended 
view of the lake, its islands, and the distant mountains of Ver- 
mont, whose swelling sides and rounded peaks change contin- 
ually under the passing shadows hke the shifting forms of the 
kaleidoscope. Along shore and over among the islands are 
famous fishing grounds where the skillful angler — and some- 
times those not so highly skilled — find very satisfactory sport 
with the voracious pike, the gamey bass, and the dainty yellow 
perch. A photograph is shown by the proprietor of the hotel, 
where a string of about three dozen pickerel, pike, bass, and 
Muscallonge with a certified weight of 130-odd pounds, show 
*^he result of a single day's sport. A lithographic copy of the 
photograph has a " fishy " look, but the photograph is proof 
positive, for " the instrument never lies." The house is nearly 
new ; fresh and inviting in appearance, the furnishing is good, 
the beds of the best, while the table is exceptionally nice. The 
proprietor is Charles F. Beck, of the well-known Florida 
House at St. Augustine, Florida. Steam yachts for excursions, 
sail-boat and skifi" for fisherman and idler; riding, driving, and 
the regulation lawn sports are available here, so that none 
need lack for amusements. 

A free carriage runs to all trains. New York morning pa- 
pers arrive early in the evening. Telegraph in the hotel office. 
Price for board, $2.50 to $3 per day; $12 to $15 per week. 



Rouses ToIxNT. 55 

The Coquette is a screw steamer with headquarters liere. 
It is a steel hull, 114 feet long and 22 feet beam, with a 
cabin on the main deck, a platform with awning above, buffet 
and other conveniences. Captain Rockwell (Pilot Rockwell 
of our narrative 73) is the commander. The Coquette leaves 
the Windsor at about 7:30 in the morning, touching at the 
island landings, at Plattsburgh and Port Kent, and arrives at 
Burlington about noon. Returning, reaches Rouses Point 
about 6, in time for supper and to connect with trains for the 
north and west. 

Fort Montgomery, a little way north of the long bridge, is 
an interesting ruin belonging to the United States. About a 
mile north of this a belt of woodland marks the boundary line 
between the United States and^Canada. 

7|p ■3K' ^ T^ SJ€ ^fi ^ 

The O. & L. C. railroad runs west from Rouses Point to 
Ogdensburgh from which place the Thousand Islands can be 
reached by boat or rail. For a portion of the way this road 
runs through wild land and from it several important gate- 
ways enter the Adirondacks. 

Chateaugay is 45 miles west of Rouses Point, a somewhat 
thriving country village of about 700 popula- 
tion with two hotels, stores, etc. Chateaugay 
Chasm, ij miles north of the station, rivals 
Au Sable Chasm in many respects, and de- 
serves to take rank among the wonders of the 
Adirondack region. It is about a half mile 



CHMEAUGAY 




1 



'^ Lake Ha 



Ralphs 
16 ' 



1 



in extent, walled in by perpendicular cliffs, through which the 
river runs, descending in its first leap a distance of 50 feet; 
thence by numerous broken steps, throughout its entire 
length. It is rendered accessible to the public by means of 
stairways, galleries, etc. The Chasm House stands^ at the 
entrance. It is much resorted to by local picnic parties and 
by wonder-seekers from a distance. 

Chateaugay Lake (Lower) outlet is 8 miles south of the 
station. Stage daily. The lake is about 2^ miles long and is 
connected with the Upper Lake by a navigable stream about 




56 The Adirondacks. 

the same length. A steamer runs at intervals through the 
two lakes, and a road along the east shore affords means of 
transit. The hotels of the Upper Lake are " Merrill's," 
"Relph's" and " Indian Point House". See page 59. 

Malone, the county seat of Franklin, is 57 miles from 
Rouses Point and 61 from Ogdensburgh. It 
is a flourishing village, and one of the im- 
portant towns of the state. " Hotel Flana- 
gan" is the leading house. Rates, $2.00 to 
$3.00 per day. W. R. & S. J. Flanagan, 
Proprietors. Lake Titus, 8 miles south, 
may be reached by special conveyance. 
This pretty sheet is about 2 miles long, and a quarter that in 
width. Limited accommodations may be found at the out- 
let. The Mountain View House is at the State Dam^ on the 
Salmon River, 13 miles from Malone. Accommodations are 
here for about 30 guests, R. G. Low, proprietor. Post-ofhce, 
Malone, N. Y. Rates, $10 to 15 per week, $2.50 per day. 
Indian Lake is one-third of a mile north, and outlets into the 
river above the State Dam. From it a trail leads north to the 
road running east to Ragged Lake (4J miles long, including 
the "Figure Eight"). The two are connected by a short 
stream and one-third mile carry. The name of each is de- 
scriptive enough. Ingraham Pond is about i|- miles west of 
the head of Ragged Lake. Across from the shore opposite the 
Ragged Lake House, a trail leads east i mile to Mountain 
Pond ; thence northeast 4 mifes to the outlet of Chateaugay 
Lake. Mecham Lake House is 25 miles from Malone, and 
T2 miles from Paul Smith's Station. Will accommodate 75. 
Rates, $10 to $17.50 per week; $2 to $3 per day. A. R. 
Fuller, proprietor. Meacham Lake is about 2^ miles long. 
Its outlet is the east branch of the St. Regis River. 

The Northern Adirondack Railroad extends from 
Moira, 70 miles west of Rouses Point, south to Tupper Lake 
Station, a distance of 56 miles. The Blue Mountain House 
(P. O. Santa Clara), near Blue Mountain of the North, is four 
miles southwest of Spring Cove (daily stage 75 cents), will ac- 



Northern Adirondack R. R. 



57 




lUPPlKLfi'^t K0U1» 



commodate 50. Board $1.50 per day; $6 to $9 per week. 
H. Phelps, proprietor. 

Stages are taken at Paul Smith 
Station for St. Regis Lake (see page 
60); at Saranac Inn Station for 
Saranac Inn, 8 miles distant (see 
page 106) ; at Childwood Station 
for Childwood Park House, 7 miles 
(see page 108), and at TupperLake 
Station for Wavvbeek Lodge, 8 
miles (see page 105.) Steamboat 
runs from Tupper Lake Station to 
the hotels on Tupper Lake (page 
109). During the summer, a 
through train service is maintained from New York via the N. 

Y. C. and R. W. & O. Railroads. 

***** ^ * 

The Chateaugay Railroad extends from Plattsburgh to 
Saranac Lake, a distance of 73 miles. The first section was 
built by the State to reach CHnton Prison, at Dannemora, 17 
miles from Plattsburgh. In 1880, it was extended to Lyon 
Mountain, 17 miles further; but the influx of Adirondack 
tourists was increasing, and the road, that climbed an altitude 
of 2,000 feet to Lyon Mountain, must go farther into the 
wilderness. So it was extended to Loon Lake; In 1888, 19 
miles more were added, bringing it to Saranac Lake, 
distributing its passengers by various stage routes that 
branch from it to a score or more of summer hotels. By it 
tourists reach Chazy, Chateaugay, Loon, Rainbow, St. Regis, 
and Upper and Lower Saranac Lakes, Ray Brook, Lake 
Placid and Mirror Lake, reaching even into Cascade Lakes 
and Adirondack Lodge. A Wagner sleeping car leaves Grand 
Central Station, New York, daily the year round, for Platts- 
burgh, where passengers are given time for breakfast before 
leawng for the interior. During the pleasure season, passen- 
gers can leave Grand Central Station 7:30 p. m., connecting 
v.'ith trains leaving Plattsburgh 7:30 a. m., and reach the vari- 



The Adirondacks. 




ous resorts in time for 
dinner. Passengers 
can leave New York 
at 6 p. M. by Hudson 
River night boats and 
by the Adirondack 
special from Albany 
or Troy, reach Platts- 
burgh at 12:20 and 
Saranac Lake 4:30 p. 
M. the following day. 
This enables passengers to take the stage ride from the rail- 
road to the various hotels in the cool of the day. Drawing- 
room cars are run on all trains. Sleeping and drawing-room 
car accommodations can be secured in advance at any of the 
stations. A Sunday train each way will run during July and 
August. 

Leaving Plattsburgh, the road runs south for a short dis 
tance, out past the U. S. Barracks ; then swings around to- 
ward the west, and crossing the Saranac River 10 miles froir 
Plattsburgh, climbs diagonally up out of the valley. 

Dannemora is 17 miles from, and 1,300 feet above, Platts- 
burgh. Clinton Prison is situated here, and affords a quiet 
home for a number of people of leisure, who pass their time 
in meditation, making clothing, and other congenial pursuits. 

From Dannemora, the road swings westerly, around the 
south side of Johnson Mountain, and north, near the west 
shore of Chazy Lake ; then, west and southerly to the mines ; 
running 17 miles to reach a point nine miles distant in a 
straight line. 

Chazy Lake is nearly four miles long and a mile wide. 
Chazy Lake House has an advertised capacity for 50 to 60 
guests. Rates $2.50 per day ; $12.00 to $i6.oo per week. 
Open, May to October 15. This house stands near the north 
end of the lake, and may be reached by boat from Chazy Sta- 
tion. Fare 50 cents. 



ClIATEAUGAY LaKE. 59 

Lyon Mountain is the centre of extensive mining opera- 
tions of the Chateaugay Ore and Iron Gompany, and exists at 
the pleasure of that corporation. In 1878 it contained only a 
few scattered houses ; it now has a hotel, stores, and churches, 
with about 2,500 inhabitants, and is in a thriving condition. 
It is peculiarly a mining town in appearance ; lacking the 
usual accompaniment of gambler and rumseller, for people of 
that ilk are not tolerated here. The attention of all good 
people, who believe evil should be licensed, because prohibi- 
bition can never prohibit, is respectfully called to this spot. 
The houses are mostly of logs and of uniform size. A day 
can be spent here profitably inspecting the mines and miners 
at work, the crushers, separators, etc. 

Upper Chateaugay Lake is about four miles in length and 
one broad. It empties at the north, through a winding stream, 
into the Lower Lake, which is somewhat 
smaller than the upper. It is picturesque 
with its surrounding mountains and rug- 
ged shores. It is reached by stage from 
Lyon Mountain, 4 miles, and from 
Chateaugay Station on the O. & L. C. 
R. R. by a 6 mile stage ride and by con- 
necting boat through the lower lake and 
narrows. It has a number of summer cottage camps on its 
shore. 

A small steamboat runs through the lower and upper lakes 
and landing at all camps and hotels. Fare 50 cents. 

Ralph's, on the east shore 3 J miles from Lyon Mountain 
(stage fare 50 cents), has capacity for about 100 guests. Open 
from June 15th to October. Rates, $3.00 per day; $14.00 
to $17.50 per week. J. W. Hutton, Proprietor. Here will be 
found tennis, billiards and bowling, for lovers of such amuse- 
ments, boats, guides and camp supplies for the sportsman, 
and fishermen. The house is specially attractive because of 
its air of neatness that extends from office to kitchen: thq 




6o The Adirondacks. 

beds are of the best and the table equaled by few of the most 
famous. There is a telegraph office in the hotel and two mails 
daily. The New York morning papers arrive early the day 
after publication. The proprietor is genial and obliging and, 
in short, it is one of the places where you realize that there is 
Consideration for you not limited by the length of your purse 
or influence — one of the places where with a degree of com- 
fort not often met with you are surrounded by a primitive en- 
vironment that goes to make the ideal summer's outing. Dur- 
ing the season Mr. Hutton may be found here — a genial boni- 
face always at his post — when winter comes he is off with the 
birds to florida, where he welcomes his cold-blooded patrons 
from the north in a like cheery and acceptable manner. 

The Merrill House is near the outlet, with accommoda- 
tions for about fifty. Rates $10.00 to $14.00 per week, with 
a discount for small children. Post-office (" Merrills," N. Y.) 
and telegraph office in the house. Oliver Young, proprietor. 
The house stands on rising ground about 60 feet back from 
the water's edge. It is one of these long rambling cozy sort 
of structures that gives you a sense of homelike welcome, 
never felt in presence of a triumph in classical architecture. 
The view from the house is beautiful, showing the entire 
stretch of the lake with the surrounding mountains. Merrill's 
has been for years a noted resort among old hunters and fisher- 
men. The smaller game birds and water fowl are here in 
their season, squirrels and foxes abound, and deer and bear 
are not uncommon additions to the list of the killed. It gives 
also by its position near the outlet, a choice of lake or river 
fishing according to day or season. It furnishes outfits and 
supplies for hunter and fishermen. It maintains special baited 
buoys in the lake at the service of guests. For home amuse- 
ments are billiard and pool tables, a tennis court and base-ball 
ground. For riding or driving, horses and carriages can be 
had. For fishing or rowing, boaits, guides and outfits to suit. 
Stages meet all trains at Lyon Mountain, about four miles dis- 
tant. Fare 50 cents. 



Chateaugay Lake. 6i 

The Indian Point House is on the west side of tlie lake 
near the south end; capacity about 40 guests. Rates, $1.50 
per day, $8 to $10 per week. Post-office address, " Merrill's, 
N. Y." R. M. Shutts, proprietor. The accommodations are 
in a group of buildings that have grown to meet the increasing 
demand of visitors, and the equipment consists of some of the 
best beds made, and furniture comfortable enough to fill all 
reasonable desires. It is strictly a temperance house, no liquor 
being sold on the premises. Steamboats run regularly to 
connect with the stage at Ralph's and through to the Lower 
Lake to connect with stage for the O. & L. C. Railroad. 
Fare to railroad, $1. Mr. Shutts is a veteran hunter and fish- 
erman, and his house is admirably located for lovers of wild- 
woods sports. Some of the best fishing grounds of the lake 
are close by the house. At the back is a dense forest that 
reaches out into the wild section, through which trails run to 
smaller sheets of water that are little known exgept to the local 
hunter and fisherman. All requisites for sport are supplied 
when wanted. 

The railroad swings around the west side of Lyon Moun- 
tain affording a beautiful and extended view of Chateaugay 
Lake at one point where the woods have been cut away for 
that purpose. Then come forge and coal-kilns, and beyond, 
winding west and south, the road penetrates a wild and inter- 
esting section, hJretofore almost an unknown wilderness, until 
Loon Lake is reached. Loon Lake extends south from the 
station, and is about two and a half miles long, with high 
banks and irregular shores. 

The Loon Lake House stands on the high ridge which, 
like the rim of some wide-mouthed volcano, holds the lake 
within its circHng walls at its south end, while beyond, the 
land drops rapidly down into the deep valley of the Saranac. 
The house is roomy, well furnished, and, together with the cot- 
tages, has capacity for about 300 guests. Price for board, 
$3.50 to $5 per day, $17 to $25 per week. Ferd. W. Chase, 
proprietor. Post office. Loon Lake. Stages meet all trains 
at Loon Lake Station; fare 50 cents. 



62-A The Adirondacks. 

Skirting the western shore of the Lake the train swings 
around the east side of Round Pond, and winding in and out 
between other small ponds and among low sand dunes that are 
scantily covered with tufted grass, reaches Rainbow Station, 
6 1 miles from Plattsburgh. 

The Rainbow House is three miles west of Rainbow Sta- 
tion. Fifty guests can be accommodated here. Board $2.50 
per day; $10.00 to $15.00 per week. J. M. Wardner, pro- 
prietor. Post office, Rainbow, N. Y. 

This house has more than the usual number of attractions 
for the hunter or fisherman, as might be expected, where the 
proprietor himself is an ardent lover of sport, and combines 
with a hearty good-fellowship a knowledge of the habits and 
haunts of wild game possessed by few. Mr. Wardner is 
cordially seconded in all his enterprises by his efficient help- 
meet, who counts among her accomplishments that of a taxi- 
dermist and gives practical evidence of her work by filling 
every corner of the house with native specimens of the art. 
The house is finished in a most substantial manner with native 
woods, and arranged to be warmed comfortably throughout in 
case of a sudden lowering of the temperature, such as may 
be expected here by the early fishermen or the hunter who 
tarries for late shooting. This is noted fishing ground and 
claims the proud distinction of yielding the largest lake trout 
on record, one having a weight of 52 pounds. Numerous 
small ponds in this vicinity yield excellent fishing while Rain- 
bow Lake, and Wardner Pond (which comes close up to the 
house) with adjacent waters have been stocked with 800,000 
trout fry the past five years, afi"ording rare sport and astonish- 
ing results, sometimes to even the unpracticed fisherman. 
Telegraph office and post office are in the house. Carriages 
run to all trains at Rainbow Station, fare 75 cents. Recent 
improvements have been made in the surroundings that will be 
appreciated by visitors. The large farm connected with the 
house insures a supply of farm products, fresh and healthful. 



The Adirondacks. 62-B 

Bloomingdale (station) is 66 miles from Plattsburgh. 
Here stages are taken for Bloomingdale and Paul Smith's. 

The Crystal Spring House, just outside the hamlet of 
Bloomingdale, is one and a half miles east of the station. 
Stage fare, 25 cents. It is a pleasant and attractive place, with 
capacity for 30 guests. M. L Baldwin, proprietor. Rates, 
$2.50 per day; $10.00 to $15,00 ^pr week, with a liberal re- 
duction to families. The notable spring that suggested the 
name for the house is here, with water as pure as can be found 
in the Adirondacks. This place also affords good winter ac- 
commodations, and a number of guests spent last winter here. 
The level roads about the town afford pleasant drives, and 
good quarters are offered for those who may bring their own 
horses. Mr. Baldwin is manifestly filled with a desire to make 
and keep friends, and his house is eminently satisfactory. 

St. Regis Lake House, familiarly known as Paul Smith's, 
is seven miles west of Bloomingdale Station. Stage fare, $1. 
Paul Smith came here in 1861, and built a small house among 
the pines, on Lower St. Regis Lake, for the accommodation of 
sportsmen. It had a rapid growth in business, and soon 
reached remarkable proportions. It now has a stated capacity 
for 500 guests. Rates, $4.00 per day; $21.00 to $30.00 per 
week. A. A. Smith, proprietor. Post-office, " Paul Smith's." 
This point is reached also from Paul Smith's Station on the 
Northern Adirondack railroad, over which during the season of 
pleasure travel cars are run from Grand Central Station, New 
York, without change. For descriptive and excuision book of 
the section covered by this route, address A. C. Allison, G. 
P. A., Moira, N. Y. 

Lower St. Re;gis Lake is about two miles long by one 
broad, and discharges west through the middle branch of the St. 
Regis River. It is about 1,600 feet above tide. The sur- 
rounding country is tame compared with the mountain dis- 
tricts, the only elevation of any considerable importance being 
St. Regis Mountain. 

Saranac Lake (village) is 73 miles from Plattsburgh. Fare 
from New York, by rail, $11.75. For matter relating to this 
section see page 97. 



52-0 Peasleville. 

Peasleville lies among the hills about ten miles due west 
from Hotel Champlain on the little river that empties into the 
lake at the south of Bluff Point. It is a place comparatively 
unknown to the summer tourist — outside the great pubHc 
thoroughfares where the pleasure-seeker goes up and down. 
It is reached best over the Au Sable branch of the " D. & H." 
railroad from Plattsburgh to Peru, thence by carriage six miles 
west. It lies between two parallel mountain spurs that pro- 
ject eastward from the great Adirondack system, enclosing the 
Salmon River Valley. The elevation is sufficient to give it a 
pure and bracing atmosphere, and the views from its near 
heights are far-reaching and restful. On the one hand, the 
valley stretches away toward old Whiteface till it is lost in the 
higher land of the Adirondack plateau; on the other, it in- 
cludes the most beautiful portion of the Champlain Valley, 
the broad lake and the Green Mountains beyond. At fre- 
quent intervals the river is fed by little streams from living 
springs on the mountain sides, with water as pure, sweet and 
wholesome as the earth affords. Brook trout fishing — good 
before and seldom indulged in here except by the local angler 
with the crudest of tackle — has recently been greatly improved 
by stocking the principal streams, and affords very satisfactory 
sport to the fisherman, experienced or otherwise. Partridges 
are abundant on the mountains, and, with squirrels, aftbrd fit 
targets for the fowling piece which is the only firearm that one 
needs to take to this section. For amusements, Davis Pond, 
a mile long by a fourth that in width, gives opportunity for 
boating while the many picturesque roads that branch out as 
the valley widens at the east and west ends, afford unlimited 
extent and variety that cannot fail in some instance, at least, 
to prove delightful. Accommodations can be found among 
the farm houses in the valley (or on the mountain sides, if one 
is inclined to seek the greater elevations) where wholesome 
country fare, with an abundance of fresh farm and dairy pro- 
ducts can be had and willing and unstinted service, respecting 
which address Arnold & Ricketson, Peasleville, Clinton Co.. 
N. Y., for particulars of names and places. 



Wilmington. 62 -n 

The Au Sable Branch R. R. extends from Plattsburgh, 
10 miles, in a southwesterly direction, to Au Sable Station. 
Coaches leave Au Sable on the arrival of morning train from 
Plattsburgh and stage from Au Sable Chasm, going via Wil- 
mington Notch, where dinner is had; arriving at Lake Placid 
at about 3. Fare from Au Sable Station to Wilmington, $1, 
to Lake Placid, $2.50, 

A stage runs daily from Au Sable Forks, 13 miles above 
Au Sable Station, to Keen Valley, 20 miles south, 7na Lower 
and Upper Jay. 

When, in '73, the Professor and I made our first visit to 
this section, there were no palace cars to set us down in the 
midst of the lake country, nor even a coach to carry us to the 
interior, but instead we journeyed in a chartered rig, from Au 
Sable Chasm to Wilmington and beyond. If you will come 
with us on that trip we will show you a section delightfully 
wild and picturesque, as yet only partially developed and not 
appreciated at half its true worth — a section remarkable for 
striking features, even in a country whose untiring charm is 
its variety; its strong contrasts, and its rapid changes. 

Following the route shown in gateway No. 2, we were in 
due time deposited on the steps of the old Whiteface Moun- 
tain House at Wilmington, where we were confronted by a 
big, square-looking fellow, with pants in boots and signs of fun 
in his clear, blue eye. We enquired if he was landlord. 

With a quizzical look down at his working-clothes, he re- 
plied : "Well, I don't know. It's been so long since we had 
company, that it don't pay to keep a landlord ; but you'd better 
come in." So we entered, and were soon as comfortable and 
contented as a good supper and a roaring fire could make us. 

Wilmington gives marked evidence of former prosperity, 
and, at some past time, was a centre of considerable import- 
ance. Now it is a little hamlet, combining the old and the 
new picturesquely enough, prettily located on the west branch 
of the Au Sable River, where it flows along under the east base 
of Whiteface Mountain. 




VIEWS ON THE NEV YORK AND CANADA RAILROAD 




SUMMIT OF WHITEFACH MOUNTAIN. 



CHAPTER V. 



OLD WHITEFACE. 




UT off from its kindred on the south by 
Wilmington Notch, and on the north by 
one almost as deep, pyramidal in form, 
although somewhat the longest north and 
south, its base clothed in inky spruce and 
balsams, its naked granite head among the 
clouds " Old Whiteface " stands one of 
the finest mountain peaks in the Adiron- 
dacks. 

" I'll tell you what I'll do," said our warm- 
hearted landlord at night as we sat discuss- 
ing pro and con the ascent of "Old White- 
face," " if you will stay over I will take you 
two miles up the mountain — as far as we can conveniently 
set with a wagon — and send a guide to the top with you, ior 




I 



Old Whitefacb. 65 

It's the grmndcst mountain view to be had in the Aditondacks, 
and I don't want you to go away without seeing it" Of 
':ourse we accepted, only insisting that he go with us. So at 
nine in the morning, with the thermometer at 48, we set out 
up the mountains ; we left the wagon which returned to the 
hotel, with instructions to meet us at sunset, and proceeded 
up the bridle path toward the summit, traveling about a mile 
westerly then turning toward the south, entered the standing 
timber and began the ascent in earnest. 

At the end of a half hour we had gone another mile and came 
out on an open space called "Lookout Point," half way to 
the summit Here the blueberries grew thick, and we scraped 
whole handfuls from the bushes and ate them — in ten minutes 
gathering all we cared for. Then we resumed our course and 
pressed upward through the dark woods, scrambling up the 
steep path where great rocks alternated with pools of black 
muck in a semi-liquid'state, trodden and mixed by horses' feet, 
and we wondered that horses could climb such places with a 
hundred and fifty to two hundred pounds of humanity on their 
back ; but Baldwin said to his knowledge not an accident 
further than being lost for a night, ever happened on the 
mountain. We reached the shanty, three-fourths ot a mile 
from the summit, a little past noon, and here occurred a des- 
oerate encounter between three men on the one side and six 
slices of bread and butter, supported by other fixtures, on the 
other, which resulted in their total defeat and destruction. 

The shanty is in a small clearing, at the highest point where 
wood and water can be obtained, has log sides, with a root, 
part canvass, part bark. Within is a parlor and cook stove ; 
along one side, raised a little above the floor, a platform that 
looked as though it might do service as Brigham Young's 
family bedstead, was covered with spruce and hemlock 
branches, and blankets. A sort of cross between a stairway 
and ladder led up to the ladies' dormitory under the sharp 
roof, through which the stars could peep in places. Here, in 
Ihe bed which was over nearly the entire floor, '• permiscus 
like," we could discover signs of the tender feeling with which 
the fair sex was regarded — in the springy moss and fine leaves 
^hich had been stripped from the hemlock branches, on wbfcb 



66 



The Adirondacks. 



the lords ot creation slept down below. The pipe from the 
■tove in the lower room, where a fire can be kept roaring all 
night, passed up through this one, and altogether it was a 
cosy, jolly, fun-provoking place to be m, where, as our guide 
remarked, " if there was any fun in a fellow it was going to 
show itself." We, in imitation of others before us who had 
written their names in every conceivable and reachable place 
in the building, registered and proceeded on our way to th» 
summit. 




•* Pretty rough work," said Baldwin, " but hundreds of people 
come up every year and ride clear to the top. A big doctor 
came here from Buffalo with his family and a four-horse team 
that he had been all over the country with — a very valuable 
team, too, — and when he said he was going to the top of the 
mountain with them I tried to stop him, and I offered to get 
horses that were accustomed to the road for nothing, rather 
than have him hurt his, but no ; ' other horses have been 
there, have they not?' said he, and when I told him yes, he 
said, • then mine can go ; ' so he took them out of the 
harness and put his wife, a woman that would weigh two 
hundred, on the firiest one of the lot and started, and I felt 
bad for I knew something would happen, and they rode those • 

horses to the very top and just turned around and " . We 

gazed down over the fearful precipice at our feet while out 
hearts seemed to cease their motion as he slowly concluded — 
'• and rode down again without getting a scratch 1 ** 



Old Wiiiteface. 67 

"But how can ladies manage to keep on the horses' backs, 
irhere it seems almost impossible for the horse to get along 
alone?" 

** Manage!" said he, " like a man, of course, astride, and it 
makes me laugh to see them sometimes when they find that 
they've got to go in that way. So modest when they start, 
some of them, that they are dreadfully afraid of showing their 
feet, but they soon get over that and come down with colors 
flying. I don't know as they would ever have done it if 
Mrs. Murray, wife of the Rev. Adirondack Murray, hadn't set 
the fashion herself She's a dashing, independent sort ol 
woman, who don't let thoughts of what people may say inter- 
fere with her plans. Well, after Mrs. Murray set the example, 
we had no difficulty, and now lots of them go up in that way; 
as, with the horses we have and a guide at their sides, there 
is not the slightest danger in making the ascent." The regu- 
lar price for a horse and guide is six dollars, or four dollars for 
the horse alone ; but unless a lady is perfectly at home in the 
saddle, she will be apt to wish she was " at home " in reality. 
It is needless to add that the Turkish costume is considered 
the most appropriate for this style of amusement. 

All the way up we had noticed fresh tracks maae by three 
several persons — one, a man's, which also appeared to have 
descended, and two evidently made by ladies — one short and 
thick, the other slender and dainty in its manner of touching 
the ground. It had been a matter of wonderment to us, and 
•• Little Foot-prints," as we styled the owner of the dainty 
stepping foot, was a constantly recurring subject of specula- 
tion. "Where is Little Foot-prints? who is she? is she 
pretty? — of course. And the other — why are they appar- 
ently alone, when the Big Foot has gone back ? " questions 
that we hoped soon to solve ; questions that preyed upon the 
Professor, as the oft-twirled moustache and passage of hia 
fingers through his auburn locks would seem to indicate. Ot 
course it was nothing to me, and only out of mere curiosity 
that I managed to reach the top first, but "where was Little 
Foot-prints ? " Not there, certainly, for the summit, the sides 
and the backbone of the mountain up over which we had 
passed were primeval, unyielding rock They had not r©» 



The Adirondacks. 

turned by the path ; they might have plunged down the sides 
in Bome other direction, but the feeling took possession of us 
that our " Little Foot-pnnts " had taken wings and flown up 
among the angels, just a little higher than where we stood. 

How can I describe it — the wonderful beauty of the day, 
the clear, crisp atmosphere surrounding us — the great pur- i 
ple-rimmed basin, in the center of which, lifted up on a pin- it 
nacle, we stood, while the mighty, sweeping dome of heaven | 
came down all around and blended with the mountain edges. ^ 
A keen, wintry blast sweeping past, penetrating even through ,, 
the heavy blankets that we had brought from the house below ; i 
the bits of ground frozen nearly as hard as the rock on which 1 
they rested; every stunted bush and blade of coarse grass ; 
which clung to the wind-swept summit gleaming with frost 
needles and sparkling like spun glass in the bright sunshine i\ 
while below, the country lay spread out in the glory of its 
autumnal dress, its gold and crimson, brown and green, its I 
pearly lakes and threads of silver, its purple hills and mellow i 
distance, over which lay a mantle of tender blue haze, seen i 
only in autumn — not smoke — but something that suggests f 
the thought of the myriad millions of pale, sweet ghosts ol 
falling leaves and dying flowers. Back toward the north ran 
the sharp ridge up which we had toiled, naked and dark for a 
quarter of a mile, then a stunted growth of balsams gnarled 
and twisted ; a few live branches low down at the surface, the 
tops dead and dry ; then, as we look further the spruce and 
cedar grow dark and thick down to the belts of birches and 
maples below. Away oflf to the east is Lake Champlain, lost 
in the mist toward tlie north, shut in by the Green Mountains, 
and beyond, the white hills of old New England. To the 
south lay the great peaks of the Adirondacks. " Haystack,' 
" Marcy " — the clond-piercer of the Indians, '* Colden," with 
the white track of tJie avalanche down its side, and others — 
a long line of giants, their dark blue crests rising like ocean 
billows — grand and changeless in their mighty forms, over- 
whelming in their sublimity. 

Away toward the west a lower set of mountain waves are 
seen, over a comparatively level tract of country cut and out- 
lined with a confused network of ponds and streams, with 



Old Wihteface. 69 

nere and there a broad, shining sheet of water ; Lake Placid 
at our feet, the Saranacs and Big Tupper's farther away, and a 
host of others, too numerous to mention, while over the pur- 
ple rocky rim of the mountains to the north stretched the 
faint blue of the level Canadas, through which was the silvery 
gleam of the mighty St. Lawrence. 

Turning once more toward the grand Indian pass we see 
the fields of North Elba, and — a mere speck — the home and 
resting Dlace of old John Brown. From the pass above, the 
Ausable rises and comes toward us ; here and there we catch 
glimpses of it, a mere thread, through Wilmington Notch, 
under the great wall, through the natural flume at our feet, 
past the little village and away to Keeseville beyond which it 
plunges down over the rocks at Birmingham, and finds its 
way out through the dark chasm to Lake Champlain. 

Seventy years ago an avalanche of loose stones and the 
gathered moss and vegetable deposit of ages went down the 
western slope of this mountain and the exposed surface, 
whiter than the rest, is said to have given it the name ; but 
there is a more reasonable theory, as the line can hardly be 
noticed unless covered with snow, that the old giant's naked 
brow, for so long a period covered with snow, suggested the 
name of " Old Whiteface." On the topmost point, firmly at- 
tached to the rock, we found the card of the chief of the Adi- 
rondack Survey, a metallic disk with this inscription : "White- 
face Mountain, Station No. 2. Verplanck Colvin, S. N. Y. 
Adirondack Survey, 1872." All around, the surface of the 
rock was scarred and chiseled with the names of former visit- 
ors while on one, cut deep and clear, were the words, 

"Thanks be to God for the mountains !" 
ana every heart joined with that grand old mountain peak in 
saying, " thanks be to God for the mountams." A great, dark, 
litchen-covered, chaotic mass of broken rock forms the sum- 
mit ; to the north and south the ascent is gradual, but on 
either side it is almost perpendicular for many feet, then curves 
outward and is covered by the dark evergreens. We gazed 
town from the dizzy height, 

" We heard the troubled flow 
Of the dark olive depths of pinet, resounding 
A thousand feet below." 



70 



The Adirondacks. 



We marked our homeward course through the glistening 
lakes, away around the blue serrated summit of Mount Sew- 
ard, then started on our descent. A sudden exclamation from 
our guide brought us to his side, where he was inspecting 
what we took to be the track of a naked foot. 

" What is it ? " 

" A bar — been here since we went up — going down, proba- 
bly, to the blueberry patch. We may see him if we go careful." 

And carefully we went, following the track along out to the 
blueberry patch, and there we lost it We waited, watched 
and ate berries until the shadow of the mountain like a great 
pyramid reached out and touched the little village ; then we 
started. 

" Maybe you'd better lead," said Baldwin, making a desper 
ate etfort to keep his feet from getting the advantage of him, 
while an ax, tin pail and sundry other articles jingled and 
thumped about on every side. " It bothers me to have folks 
treading on my heels." So lead we did — the result of which 
may be inferred from a remark he was overheard to make that 
night, to the effect that it beat somethin-or-other how tnem 
fellows came down that mountain, "and," said he, "when I'd 
get some ways behind I'd drop into a dog trot to catch up, 
then I'd hear that little fellow snicker and the long-legged 
one would c^ver six feet at a step." 



CHAPTER VI. 



"ON THE ROAD.' 



'*Joha Urown'a body Ues a-moulderinsr in the gTmT% 
And hit soul goes inarching on." — Old S»nf, 

HE morning following our ascent of old White 
face, he had draped his shoulders in a mantle 
of mist, modestly hiding his face in the clouds, 
and although the sun came out toward noon 
and the clouds went scurrying across the sky 
like a routed army before the advance of an 
enemy, a legion still hung around his iron 
head, skulked in the rents and hollows of his 
furrowed side and crowded close under the 
lee of his protecting form. It was interesting 
to watch this vast host — this wnue-robed 
army of the sky — seeming almost human in 
its maneuverings to gain a place of safety 
from the fierce west winds which tore it into fragments and 
stiungit out into shreds, and rolled it up into great balls to 
be dashed against the mountain, and separating, pass on either 
side to wheel into line beyond, or entering the surface current 
mount up the steep, and shooting out over the sharp crest, 
curl downward into the billowy mass below, where it clung 
like some tattered signal of distress, its ragged, wind-whipped 
end stretching away out toward the east. 

After dinner we took a carriage, sandwitched the driver be- 
tween us, and started for North Elba. Att. Clyne was the 
driver's name, a pleasant young fellow, wb3 had rather hear 
or tell a good story than to eat, and that is saying a good deal 
for him. He inaugurated a series by telling of the wonderful 
speed of the particular beast behind which we were riding, 
the truth of which he would demonstrate when we arrived «i 




72 The Adirondacks. 

a suitable piece of road. We never came to that suitable 
piece. Once we thought we had, and he encouraged her a 
little with the whip. She felt encouraged for about ten feet, 
and then rested while we got out and strapped a couple ol 
pieces of whiffletree together which we had discovered dang- 
ling at her feet , then we went ahead carefully. About two 
miles south of Wilmington is the natural flume, a long furrow 
through the rock like the track of a giant plowshare, through 
which the water shoots like a flash of light Some call it a 
wonder ; but, with the fellow at Niagara, we might say " it 
would be a greater wonder if the water didn't come down, it 
comes so easy." Our road still led up along the river, now 
flashing out broad in the sunlight as it rippled over the stones, 
now quiet, and then plunging over the " big falls " seeming to 
lose itself in the cavernous depths below. 

Wilmington Pass is the natural gateway to North Elba 
from the north, a notch cut out of the mountain, through 
which the west branch of the Ausable flows, it is one of the 
finest, if not the finest, combination of river, rock and moun- 
tain scenery to be found in the Adirondacks, and was especi- 
ally beautiful in its autumn dress, as we saw it on that early 
October day. The road ran along up by the river, fringed and 
canopied by the crimson and yellow maples, the great, ragged, 
rough-aimed birches, the cone-shaped balsam, the dainty- 
limbed tamarack and scarlet-berried mountain ash. The pasfl 
seems to have been caused by some mighty power that turn- 
ing neither to the right nor left, struck this mountain range 
and passed through and onward, carrying every thing before 
it out on the plain beyond, leaving the broken walls on either 
side to frown down on the torn rocks below, and, when the 
tempest raged, to thunder back defiance at each other. Then 
time covered the rocks with mosses, the floods brought 
rich offerings and dropped them in the bottom-land, trees 
sprang up and others found lodgment in the cleft rocks, and 
now all is covered with nature's mantle. No, not all, for at 
our left, the naked rock rises up, straight up, fully five hun- 
dred feet, at places even projecting beyond its base and seem- 
ing ready to fall as great masses have already fallen, through 
^nd around which the road p'oes, at times with barely suffic'- 



On the ivoad. 



ent room to pass between them and the narrow, swift-nivming 
river on the other side. Across the river at our right is a 
narrow fringe of bottom-land trees, then rising, precipice 
above precipice, and cliff on cliff, is Old Whiteface, his feet 

washed by the river, his head still among the clouds, and . 

There stands that fast beast out to the full extent of the reins, 
with the pieces of broken whifHetree on either side. 

" Gr — ROOP ! " The sound was richly musical and unmis- 
takably African for " get-up." We were resting, if you please, 
three of us in a buggy, right in the middle of the road, the 
Professor and I rapturously enjoying the lovely scenery and 
mnocently talking about subjects entirely foreign to the situ- 
ation, while " Att." sat squeezed in between us, holding on to 
one end of the reins and using some very choice language in 
regard to the mare who stood out at the other, looking around 
occasionally to see why some one didn't make a move to get 
her back where she belonged. 

" Gr-roop ! " Letters cannot express the sound. The 
nearest approach to it is when some sea-sick mortal rushes to 
the vessel's side and vainly attempts to give up his own din- 
ner to the fishes. We got out and tied the traces back to the 
cross-bar, put the broken whiflietree in the wagon and sent 
"Att." forward to make repairs. 

" Gr-roop ! " whack / a paii 
of sorry-looking objects ap- 
peared over the brow of a 
little knoll behind us, rising 
slowly as rises the stately 
ship above the watery hori- 
zon, first two pairs of hairy 
ears, then a pair of venera- 
ble heads swaying from side 
to side, then their entire 
forms loomed above the 
sandy horizon, and we looked 
" ^'" """"*'•" up through a swaying thicket 

of Icjfs and straps and wooden bar* 




74 The Adirondacks. 

"Camels, by darn 1 " said the Professor excitedly, catching 
■If^ht of what appeared to be the hump peculiar to the "ship 
Df the desert" 

No, not camels. Professor, but ancient specimens of horse 
architecture; style, gothic, with a tendency toward many 
gables, and that which you think the hump is a French roof 
of buffalo skin to protect them, or the harness, or both, from 
the rain. Framed in nature's noblest mold tha«p beasts un- 
doubtedly were ; but the party who supplied the flesh wat 
apparently short of material, or else they were clothed in 
their summer suit. Their harness fenced them in and bound 
them round about suggesting suspicion of a latent fire within 
that might, if aroused, burst forth and rend straps of an 
ordinary width, as the lightning shivers the mighty oak. — 
Straps ? they crossed and covered those noble animals until 
they looked like a railroad map of Massachusetts, and at 
every crossing was a big patch of buffalo skin. They looked 
kindly at us, with eyes out of which all coltish frivolity had 
long since flown. Then the expression seemed to change to 
one of mild surprise as the wagon gently pressed against them 
and they found it easier to trot down the hill than to hold 
back. As they forged up alongside they stopped. They had 
evidently been driven by a sewing machine agent or some 
candidate for oflSce, and thought they must stop for every 
man they saw. We instantly propounded the following co- 
nundrum to the driver : 

"Why can't we ride in that extra seat? " 

He gave it up at once and we got aboard the buckboard. 
"Gr-roop I " whack I we were under way. The driver was a 
good-looking fellow, intelligent, well-informed, and decidedly 
attractive in his way, even if his skin was a few shades darker 
than regulation and his hair unexplorabie in its kinkiness. 
We inquired his destination and he told us Nuth Elba. As 
St. Helena suggests the first Napoleon, so Noit»4 Elba brings 
with it the picture of an old man with white hair and flowing 
^hite beard, crazy some said, but with wonderful method in 
his madness ; a carpet-bagger in Kansas where he took an 
active part in the troubles which in 1856 assumed the formid- 
able proportions of a civil war ; the " Old man of Osawat<>. 



John Brown. 



inie," whose presence was marked by dissensions a»d blood- 
•bed ; who urged men on to murder in the name of freedom 

and read his Bible all the 
time- who in 1859, with a 
mere handful of men, 
struck the first hard blow 
at the institution of slavery 
in the South, and which, 
probably, more than the 
eloquence of all the Phil- 
lips and Sumners in the 
world, tended to precipi- 
tate the war by which, 
through rivers ot blood, 
four million slaves went 
free. He was called "a 
visionary," "an old fool," 
but men who have given 
the subject study say that 
it was the best organized 
^ -^ conspiracy that ever failed, 

cZ-^^A^yiy (/7j^/rUy;ny» reaching out as it did over 

the entire Southern States. 
The blow struck at Harper's Ferry was to be the signal for a 
general uprising of the blacks, but he misjudged his men 
and — failed. 

A fa">atic he undoubtedly was. He seemed to feel that 
he was specially called not only to free but to educate the 
blacks. He secured a large tract of land here at North 
Elba to demonstrate his theory, and had established quite a 
colony. Then feeling that the time had come, he, with three 
sons, a son-in-law and a few others who had become converted 
to his belief— twenty-two in all — played at Harper's Ferry — 
and lost. They were soon surrounded, and the negroes, to 
whom they trusted so much, let them fight it out alone. One 
son escaped, another was shot dead, and still another lay 
dying by his side, while the old man fought on ; and at last, 
when overpowered and compelled to surrender, he locked the 
•ccrets he possessed in his breast that his friends might not 




76 The Adirondacks. 

Buffer, and died as he had lived, firm in the faith that iw some 
manner he was the divinely appointed agent who was to lead 
his children out of the land of bondage. He murmured not 
against the people for whom he suffered, who had deserted 
him iB his direst need, but stopped to kiss a little negro baby 
on his way to the scaffold, seeming to show by the act, how 
willingly he laid down his life for them and the cause he had 
espoused.* 
Then the body of old John Brown, the convicted murderei 

• -this felon with the mark of the hangman's rope on his 
neck — was taken down from the gallows and borne through 
the country whose laws he had transgressed, while bells tolled 
and cities were draped in mourning for his sake, to his old 
home among the mountains — For he had said : " When I die, 
bury me by the big rock where I love to uil and read the word 
of God," and there, one terribly cold day in bleak Decembei, 
a few who had loved the old man, laid his body and covered 
it up in the frozen ground, 

** And his Boul kom marohlag on." 

Yes, the spirit of old John Brown goes marching on, and 
with it, keeping time to the musiC of the old song, whole 
armies marched to battle, and with the victory came that for 
which the old man worked and died. 

"Gr-roop ! " whack I Back to the reality of a darkey belab- 
oring a pair of absent-minded and almost absent-bodied 
horses, and they supremely unconscious of the fact. We ven- 
tured to inquire if our driver was one of John Brown's pet 
lambs, and he with, as Mrs. Partington would say, considerable 
"asparagrass," gave us to understand that he was not. 

" He established a colony of blacks up here, didn't he?" 

" Yes, sah, but they ain't heah now. We are the only family 
of colo'd folks in town." 

" Where are they now ? " 

" All gone." " Gr-roop I " whack / " See dat hos8 — Gone ; 
nobody knows where." 

" How many were there of them ? " 

"Mebbe fifteen or twenty families — don't know, didn't 
think much of 'em,*' 

* See Note on page 83. 



*'On the Road.'* 'j'j 

•' Slaves, I suppose, that the old man had run in here from 
the South ? " 

" No, sah, not one. G'lang ! " 

" Where did he get them ? " 

" Oh, from New York, mostly, I guess — not much account- 
Niggers. Gr-roop ! what you 'bout? " 

" He was generally considered a fanatic, wasn't he?* 

" San ? " 

"You thought him a monomaniac?" 

"A — yes, sah. Ge-/<?«^, thah." 

" You say they are all gone ; what has become of them ? " 

" Don't know ; they couldn't make a livin' heah ; too cold 
for *em ; wa'nt much used to work, I guess, an' couldn't stan' 
the kind they got heah. Most of 'em was barbers an' sich, 
who thought they wouldn't have nothing to do when they 
come heah, an' after the old man died they couldn't get along, 
so they dug out, some of 'em, an' some of 'em died, an* one 
ole niggah froze to death." 

•• How was that ? " 

•* Well, he went out huntin' one day in winter and got lost 
in the woods. He had a compass with him, but when they 
found him they found where he had sat down on a log and 
picked his cotnpass to pieces, and then sot there till he froze to 
death." 

It is a well-known fact that some unused to the woods will 
become so effectually " turned around " that they will be cer- 
tain that something is the matter with the compass to make 
it point wrong, and even distrust the sun itself if it happens 
t3be in a different position from that which they think it 
ought to be. 

" Dem bosses gettin' kinder tired," remarked their master ; 
" don't get along over this road very fast." 

We accepted the information with polite incredulity, as is 
becoming in those to whom an unnoticed fact is fiist made 
apparent. 

" Been on the road a whole week — " 

" Getting from the Forks?" we innocently inquired. 

•* Oh, no, sah ; it's only fifteer^ miles to 'Sable Forks. I'v* 



78 The Adirondacks. 

been canyin' a young lady 'round to see the country, driviu 
them hosses steady for a week — " 

"Without feeding? Well, now, I don't wonder they — " 

•• No, no, sah ; I feed 'em reg'lar, only they run out all sum- 
mer an* I haven't got the hard feed in 'em yet. They ain't 
very fat just now, but they's good hosses for all that." 

Then he whipped up lively for two or three rods past a 
hanty, where we saw Att. busily engaged on what he was 
pleased to call a whiffletree, to take the place of the broken 
one. Then we t- good-bye to our sable friend and sat 
down by the river o make a sketch of the scene. Feeble 

and unsatisfactory, perhaps, but a shadow, at least a sugges- 
tion, of foaming, sparkling sun-bright water, dancing along 
among the stones ; great, shaggy, yellow birches, golden 
beeches, crimson maples and tangled depths of dark green, 
while through openings in the trees, the gray cliff showed 
giand and strong, appearing even greater than itself through 
the tender blue of the luminous haze that intervened. Then 
we all got in behind the fast horse and continued on our way. 
Up along the river, through a dark, level tract, almost a swamp, 
where the balsams grew thick and the trailing moss hung in 
masses from their branches, out into the open country, where 
we saw pleasant homes, well tilled fields, and the river wind- 
ing smoothly through the fertile meadows of North Elba. 

After a while we came to a place where the houses were a 
little nearer together than anywhere else along the road, so 
we called that North Elba ; but the population is rather thin 
at the best, and the country to a great extent devoted to 
grazing and grass growing. Winter up there seems to be the 
chief season and never disappoints them in coming, and it is 
seldom that a year passes when snow is not seen on the moun- 
tains near by every month excepting August. It is said to be 
very healthy, so much so that the only manner of taking ofif 
is a habit they have of freezing to death, and when this hap- 
pens, as is often the case in summer, they do not find it nec- 
essary to bu»y them, but (if Att. is to be believed) simply lay 
them away somewhere exposed to the pure balsamic air and 
in the course of six or seven weeks they moss over. John 
Brown was only covered up as a protection against curiositY 



North Elba. 



79 



hunters, who have a habit of chopping oft pieces ot fossils 
and the like, and who have broken off pieces of his tombstone 
to such an extent that it had to be boxed up to keep enough 
for directory purposes. 

Here at North Elba we strike the post-road, running in a 
north-westerly direction from Elizabethtown to the Saranac 
lakes. Turning to the right we proceeded about a mile until 
at the entrance to a lane, which led off toward the south, we 
saw a sign bearing the inscription, " John brown Farm, Re- 
freshments if desired " (at least that is what we made it out to 
be), together with an index finger, which was probably painted 
by some admirer of the old man's to indicate his present home, 
which direction, if followed, would take the traveler several 
degrees higher than we could hope to get in the Adirondacks, 
so we took the middle course — the lane — through a strip ol 
woods, into the open field, and with the dusk of a solemn twi- 
light settling down over us, stood by the great rock that he 
loved so well and by the side of which, at his own requst, he 
was buried. The farm is shut in on all sides by the thick 

forests which, on the south, stretch 
5 away in unbroken solitude to Indian 
Pass and the great peaks of the Adi- 
rondacks. It has been purchased by 
a company at whose head as prime 
mover stands Kate Field, and now 
held as a sort of public park which 
is annually visited by hundreds who, 
from curiosity or reverence for the 
old saint, make pilgrimages to their 
Mecca ot fanaticism. The house and 
outbuildings stand in the open field ; 
near by is the " big rock " and grave, 
surrounded by a rough board fence. 
As we entered the inclosure a lit- 
tle girl came out to remove the box 
from the headstone, which it was 
found necessary to cover to pre- 
serve from the destroying hand of 
the relic-hunter. Unlocking and 




The Adirondacks. 

temoving the box we saw an old fashioned, time-stained, 
granite-like stone, the corners chipped and broken off, and 
defaced so that in places some of the inscription was entirely 
gone. The upper hall was in the quaint characters of " ye 
olden time," the lower half ot a recent date ; the face bore the 
following inscription : 

" In memory of Capt*» John Brow Who Died At New^'oik 
Sept' Ye 3 1776 in the 42 year of his Age. 

"John Brown Born May 9 1800 ivas executed at Charleston, 
Va, Bee. 2. 1859. 

"Oliver Brown Born Mar. 9, 1839, Tvas Killed at Harpers 
Ferry Oct. 17. 1859." 

On the back was the following: 

" In memory of Frederick son of John and Dianth Brown, 
Born Dec 21. 1830 and murdered at Osawatomie, Kansas, Aug 
30. 1856 for his adherence to the cause of Freedom." 

" Watson Brown, Born Oct 7, 1835 was wounded at Haroers 
Ferry & died Oct. 19, 1859."* 

The grave was strewn with faded flowers ; a florist's leaden 
cross and crown filled with the same lay on the little mound, 
and under it the body of Old John Brown, alone! of his large 
family not one remaining to watch over him, but in their place 
strangers, who knew less of the old man than we who lived 
far away. His widow, and five children out of his twenty, are 
still living, it is said, scattered over the West, some of them 
in California, some nearer. 

The stone which marks the head of his grave was brought 
from Massachusetts and placed where it now stands, and we 
were told that the " Capin " John Brown, whose name heads 
the list, was his father, in which case (if the Captain was his 
father) he must have been born an orphan, as this one died 
something over twenty-three years before young John was 
born. In fact there must be some mistake about it somewhere, 
as even after careful investigation there we could not find out 
that he ever had a father, and we would respectfully suggest 
that it receive the attention of the geneological authors, who, 
for the paltry sura of a hundred dollars, will trace any man's 

* See note '* B *' on paee ta. 



** Business/* ' 8i 

pedigree back in an unbroken line to dukes and earls, oi 
better even for an additional inducement We passed up over 
the big rock bearing the inscription, cut in large letters, 
••John Brown, 1859," and to the house to learn something 
more concerning it. 

" Don't you want to stay all night? " said the little girl, with 
m eye to business. 

I glanced at the grave, the cold rock and the dreary, dark- 
ening fields around, and said ''No." Then a boy member ol 
the family cornered Att, and eloquently held up to him the 
advantages of seeing the ** stun " by daylight ; but Att. couldn't 
see it. Then the loquacious lady of the house met the Profes- 
sor at the door with the continuation of what the boy and girl 
had started, but the Professor being a modest man threw the 
responsibility on me, and, alas ! all / wanted was information. 

" We can accommodate you if you want to stay," said she, 
bringing the register. 

We said no again, counted, and found that over four hundred 
besides ourselves had registered during the summer. 

" Got as good rooms as anybody, and every body who has 
stopped here has been satisfied," continued she insinuatingly. 

"Almost everybody buy these," said the little girl, produc- 
ing a pair of stereographs of the grave and rock ; ** fifty cents 
for the two." 

We meekly produced the plaster and inquired if they owned 
the place. 

" No," said the mother, " we've only been here a little wliile, 
but take in strangers who want to stay all night and — '* 

" This is the house old John Brown used to occupy, isn't it ? " 

" Yes, but we've fitted it up new some since, and now you 
can't find any better rooms — " 

" What has become of the widow and children ? '* 

"I don't know just where, but out West somewhere, I be- 
ieve. We just take care of it and keep folks who — " 

** It seems to be all forests to the south; is there a rath 
leading from here to the Indian Pass?" 

"Yes, parties often come through it and stop over night or 
get something to eat ; and I don't like to say it myself, but 
they always seem satisfied with our fare. Now — " 



%2 



The Adirondacks. 



*« I am gathering information for a book on the Adirondacks, 
which is my reason for asking so many questions. Now il 
you have any interesting information concerning this locality 
I will be—" 

•• Well, now, I think if people knew that we were prepared 
to keep folks and was always prepared to get up meals, with 
game and trout always on hand, they would come more ; and 
it you will just state — " 

"All right ; ^<?^^ evening, madam." . - 

" We should like to — folks say they were just as well kept 
as at a hotel — might just mention trout — ^game dinners — veni- 
son nearly all the time — barn room — people — haven't — found 
— it — out — much— yet— it's— getting purty— dark— hadn't— 
you — better — stay. And as we passed out of hearing the 
thought would come that if the old man could sleep there un- 
moved for a term of years, the angel Gabriel would have to 
be in pretty good lip to start him at the end of that time. 

Note A. — Hon. Orange Ferriss, Commissioner of Claims at Washington, is authority 
for the statement made to him by Senator Pomeroy, of Kansas, that a design was 
formed to liberate John Brown, in pursuance of which 40 determined men met at 
Charleston, previous to the execution, thoroughly organized and with a plan which 
could not have failed, if undertaken under the existing circumstances. The old man 
was notified of the proposed attempt, but the spirit which had actuated him all along 
spoke in his reply : ^^ No ; I am of more use to the cause now dead than living "; and 
he died for the cause when life could have been hb for the asking. True to his mem- 
ory is the State which has placed among the honored ones at the national capital the 
statue of the champion of bleeding Kansas — *^the old man of Ossawotomie.** 

Note B. — The body of Watson Brown was brought here and laid near the father, 
October xa, 1882, after remaining unburied for nearly twenty-three years. Considered 
by the authorities of Virginia as that of a great criminal, it was given after death to 
the Medical College at Winchester, and there preserved as an anatomical specimen — 
the mother appealing in vain for the privilege of giving it Christian burial. Later, 
when the town was occupied by the Union forces, it was carried off by an Indiana 
surgeon, and kept by him as a curiosity, until in 1882, when he informed the survivors 
of its whereabouts and offered to restore it for more decent interment. From Indiana 
the poor buffeted body went to the mother in Ohio, and finally here, accompanied by 
her, the brothers Owen and John, Jr., sister and widow, and was finally laid to rest 
beside the " big rock," where he had played as a boy, while learning strange theone* 
of " duty." 




CHAPTER VII. 

North Elba — Lake Placid — The St. Regis and 
Saranac Regions. 

ORTH ELBA and Lake Placid can be reached 
^^ from Westport and Elizabethtown by stage 
daily during the season of summer travel. The 
route leads through a country beautiful in natu- 
ral attractions, passing at the south base of 
Hurricane peak and through the northern por- 
tion of Keene Valley. 

Keene is a pretty little mountain-girded ham- 
let, with churches, telegraph and telephone of- 
fices, and a number of stores of a sedate and peaceful char- 
acter. The great mountains are on the east and west, and the 
east branch of the Au Sable River runs north through the 
picturesque lowlands. 

The Keene Centre House furnishes comfortable accom- 
modations to travelers at $2.50 per day; $10 to $15 per week, 
and is open the year round. 

Cascade Lakes, formerly known as Edmond's Ponds, are 
six miles west of Keene, and a thousand feet higher ; their al- 
titude being 2,038 feet above tide. The road follows up be- 
side the brawling stream that comes through a notch in the 
west mountains, and strikes the main lake at its east end; 
thence follows along, on the north shore, for something over 
a mile, when the west, or upper, lake is reached. Long Pond 
Mountain rises abruptly along the south side, and Pitchofi 
Mountain on the north ; forming a narrow defile, where the 
lake lies like a deep, still river, while the road holds a preca- 
rious footing on the debris that has fallen from the cliffs above. 
Originally one continuous strip of water, it was divided into 



84 The Adirondacks. 

two, near the western extremity, by a deposit evidently brought 
down by the stream which foams over the precipitous wall on 
the south, in a succession of cascades, a thousand feet in ex- 
tent — in the rainy season, a foaming torrent; in time of 
drouth, a mere thread of silver hanging down over the dark 
rocks. 

The Cascade Lake House stands nearly opposite, on the 
only available bit of land found in this part of the notch. It 
was built in 1878. W.F. & S.H. Weston, proprietors, P. O., Cas- 
cadeville. It is 16 miles from this point to Saranac Lake, 
nine miles to Lake Placid, and 26 miles to the railroad at 
Westport. A broad, double piazza faces south, commanding 
a view up and down the two lakes, and of the Cascade across 
the way; affording a delightful lounging place of a hot day, 
when the wind, which is seldom still here, draws up or down 
the notch. The house is provided with fireplaces and is com- 
fortable and homelike. The post ofhce is in the house, as 
is also a telegraph office. The fare is excellent and abun- 
dant. Board, $3.00 per day; $12 to $17.50 per week, children 
under 10 years of age, special. Very satisfactory to the 
transient guest are the dinners served here at $1.00. For 
amusement, space has been found for an enclosed tennis 
court out under the trees ; for croquet, another bit reclaimed 
near the house ; and still other space for a bowling alley was 
made close by. There are boats for guests on both lakes; 
large, comfortable ones for the timid ; light, guiding-boats for 
the hunter and fisherman. These lakes are owned by the 
proprietors of the Cascade Lake House, and held by them 
exclusively for their guests. Originally noted for its big trout, 
the waters have been stocked and the fish guarded, until now 
rod and fiy are certain to yield good sport at almost any 
season. To the lover of nature in her wildest shapes., nobler 
surroundings can hardly be imagined. 

West of Cascade Lakes the road climbs up out of the notch, 
and passing through occasional clearings, crosses over to the 
more level land of North Elba. 



North Elba. 



85 




CASCADE LAKH HOUSE. 



The Mountain View House is four miles west of the Cas- 
cade Lakes. It commands a view of rare beauty and extent, 
well entitling it to its chosen name. This house is perhaps 
better known as Ames'. It has earned a well-deserved reputa- 
tion for homelike comfort and hospitality; and in addition to 
considerable transient custom, gets its full quota of those who, 
for sanitary reasons, seek the healing air of this high plain. 
The house will provide for 35 guests. The accommodations 
are good; the fare wholesome and satisfying, and the service 
very pleasant and agreeable. Open from July ist to October 
ist. Board, $8 to $12 per week; $2 per day; 50 cents per 
meal. Telegraph office in the house. P. O., Cascade ville. 
Mrs. M. S. Ames & Son, proprietors. 

From the Mountain View House it is 22 miles to Eliza- 
bethtown, stage fare $2.50. To Lake Placid, 5 miles, 50 
cents. To Saranac Lake, 13 miles, $1.50. 

Toward the south, the slope stretches away down into the 
valley, then rises in long, sweeping lines to the foothills, 
thence to higher ridges and peaks, and finally to the grand 
heights of distant Marcy, the highest mountain in the State, 
and to Mclntire, but little less in stature, the central 



86 The Adirondacks. 

figure in this mountain picture, flanked as it is by Wallface 
on the west guarding the famous Indian Pass, and Mt. Golden 
on the east across the wild notch where repose the waters 
of Avalanch Lake. Throughout all this extent of valley 
and mountain side, the forests are as natur-e left them, for 
the rugged nature of the country has been a check on the 
lumberman's avarice, and the charcoal burner even has 
stayed his devastating hand. 

Outlined against the broad chest of Mclntire — in reality 
a spur from its side — is a lower summit, Mt. Jo, sometimes 
called the Bear. Between this and the main mountain, 
more than 2,000 feet above tide, rests Clear Lake, a lovely 
sheet of water of about 30 acres in extent, with shores of 
white sand and a bordea: of shrubs and trees remaining in 
all their native beauty. 

Adirondack Lodge stands here on the east shore of the 
lake, almost hidde-n among the trees save where its high 
tower lifts its head above their tops. This is a new de- 
parture in rustic architecture, and forms one of the most 
unique and picturesque structures in the country ; a resort 
for nature's lovers, where nature's handiwork has been 
respected. It is of logs, 96 feet front, 36 feet deep, and 
three stories high, with a rear wing of almost equal size. 
Forming a part of the building is a substantial tower also of 
logs, rising above the tree tops and affording such a view as 
can be found at no other house in the Adirondacks, for 
with a widely extended vision, not a sign of civilization can 
be discerned. A broad piazza surrounds the lower portion 
of the house, its upper deck reached from the rooms above 
or by rustic outside stairs. Everything about the house or 
grounds evinces the cultivated taste of the owner, for the 
same sentiment that protected hoary tree and graceful shrub 
alike, made cunning joints among the logs, and left their 
rugged bark intact so that every pilaster, balustrade or rail- 
ing is still clothed in the rich brown covering that nature 
gave it. Within, the same good taste prevails. The walls 



88 The Adirondacks. 



I 



are plastered, to be sure, and noise-deadened, but paint and 
Brussels carpeting are tabooed as not in keeping with the 
place, tlie furniture hard wood, plain and substantial 
Fireplaces make the principal rooms comfortable on occa- 
sion. An electric annunciator puts sleeping rooms and 
office in communication. The beds are of the best. The 
windows are large single panes of plate glass in swinging 
sash. A well at the door with old-fashioned wheel and 
bucket furnishes the best tonic to be found here or any- 
where else. A lawn tennis and croquet ground in an 
opening near the lake ; swings and arbors among the trees, 
and boats on the water afford means of quiet amusement. 
There are trails to the summit of neighboring mountains for 
those who favor long tramps, and shorter walks for those less 
robust. To the top of Marcy is 7 J miles. Top of Mclntyre,4j. 
To Avalanch Lake, 5 miles. To Indian Pass, 6 miles. To 
top of Mt. Jo is a 45 minutes' scramble. A bridle path leads 
through South Meadow to Edmonds Ponds, 8 miles distant. 
It is about 5. miles by road to the main thoroughfare, which 
is touched J of a mile west of Ames'. This road built 
specially for the house presented great difficulties in con- 
struction, which, however, were successfully overcome. 
Through the season a buckboard stage conveys passengers 
and mails to connect at Transfer with Elizabethtown and 
Saranac Lake line. Fare, $1.00. 

Guides, tents and suitable clothing for the purpose may 
be procured here by parties desiring to go into camp. Ca- 
pacity of house and camps, about 100. Board per day, $4 ; 
per week, from $16 upward. Henry Van Hoevenbergh, 
l^roprietor. P. O. address, Cascadeville, N. Y. 

The Au Sable River is crossed 2 miles west of Ames\ A 
half mile further, a sign on the left points south toward the 
last resting place of old John Brown, and another mile brings 
us to where the main road is left for Mirror and Placid 
Lakes lying at the north. 

Mirror Lake is about one mile long by one-third that 
in width, its north end separated from Lake Placid by only 



Lake Placid. 89 

a narrow strip of land. The attractions her. have led to a 
phenomenal development, and the prospects are that in time 
a considerable village will line its shores. Tlie post office ,s 

" Lake Placid." 

Mirror Lake Hotel is first as you approach from the 
south In its fitful struggle for existence during the last three 
or four years, it has waxed strong and become mighty and 
to-day sLnds the largest hotel at Lake Placid. Recently it ,s 
believed it has been placed on a foundation that will not be 
shaken by the financial storms that have made a plaything of 
t in the past. It is now owned by the Lake Placid Hotel Co., 
of whth'paul smith is president and Charles E. Martin 
manager. Paul Smith's reputation as a hotel man extends 
wherever the Adirondack wilderness is known. The famous 
hotel at St. Regis Lake has been celebrated for years as the 
fashionable resort of the wilderness. Years ago when in its 
early prime, and almost the only hotel of note in the wilder- 
„ess a boy started in its service, and with the inquisitiveness 
of a' boy and the determination of a growing man to know 
e erythfng to be learned about a great hotel, served faithful y 
for years until every department was as familiar to him as the 
A B C, of his schoolboy days. Eventually a great share m 
the management of the old house fell to his lot until other 
hands came to relieve him, when, after nearly 25 years of 
faithful service, he graduated to take upon himself larger re- 
sponsibilities in different fields. This boy is the presen 
manager of the Mirror Lake Hotel, and will call to him a hos 
of friends who will remember his uniform courtesy his genial 
ways and efficient management in the office of the old St 
Regis House. Mirror Lake Hotel stands at the south end of 
MiL Lake, commanding a view of '*>^, ^'"^^ 'f ! ^^"j^^ 
the east and north, the picturesque vil age of Lake Placid 
struggling along its shores, a bit of Lake Placid itself, and 
Whiteface Mountain beyond, while, stretched along the south- 
ern sky is seen the panorama of grand mountain peaks. It is 
a roomy structure, with the necessary comforts of the great 



Lake Placid. 91 

hotel of the day. It has ample piazzas and public rooms, 
electric light, steam heat and an elevator. It is furnished 
richly and comfortably. It has spacious halls and sleeping 
rooms with high ceilings, and is capable of thorough ventila- 
tion with the most perfect sanitary conditions. Within are 
billiards and bowling. Without, all amusements common to 
out-door life, are at command. Here grace-giving tennis and 
the more sedate croquet claim each their admirers, while those 
who would row or fish can be provided with all that is neces- 
sary for comfort or pleasure. Riding and driving, staple 
amusements the world over, may be indulged in here as every 
class of vehicle common to the mountains, with saddle horses, 
are found in the hotel Hvery. Those who care to, can find 
pleasant roads and ways that may be varied at will and found 
interesting always. Price of board $3.00 to $4.00 per day ; 
$17.50 to $28.00 per week. 

There is a telegraph office in the hotel, and mails come and 
go twice a day. Stages arrive and depart for the railroad at 
Saranac Lake, morning and afternoon, and run daily to Keene 
Valley, Elizabethtown and Westport, and to Au Sable Chasm. 

The Grand View House has reverted to its former owner, 
Henry Allen, because of which many old guests will be 
pleased. Mr. Allen is always pleasant, agreeable and obliging, 
and wherever he is in the management visitors know that the 
place will be unconventional and popular. This house stands 
on the summit of a hill west of Mirror Lake. It is appropri- 
ately named the " Grand View," for not only does it com- 
mand the view north, east and south, common to other hotels 
here, but also the quiet of the spreading forests towards the 
west and the mountains that lie about far-away Saranac Lake; 
This house with its annex linked to it by a covered walk will 
accommodate 100 guests. It is nicely furnished and its beds 
are of the best class. Some of the rooms, particularly those 
in the annex are very desirable. Pure spring water is brought 
through pipes into the house. Its commanding position ren- 
ders drainage easy and thorough. It has its own telegraph of- 



92 



The Adirondacks. 



fice connected with the regular line and has livery accommo- 
dations the same as may be found at all good hotels. The 
rates are $3.00 per day; $14.00 to $17.00 per week. 
12 3 4 5 6 7 




THE GREAT PEAKS FROM LAKE PLACID. 

1 Gothic. 2 Saddleback. 3 Basin, i Marcy. 6 Golden. 6 Mclntyre. 7 Indian Pass. 

The Stevens House built in 1886 is on the high land that 
separates Mirror Lake from Lake Placid. J. A. &. G. A. 
Stevens, proprietors. 

This is one of the largest and best equipped houses and 
commands undoubtedly the most comprehensive view of any 
hotel in the Adirondacks. It stands 200 feet above the lake, 
whose surface is 1,863 f^^^ higher than the sea. From this 
point may be counted a score of the great peaks. In the 
southwest is distant Seward; further west is Ampersand; just 
over the water, at the north, is dark McKenzie ; in the north- 
east, beyond the broad surface of Lake Placid, is the bold 
crest of Old Whiteface. East and south are Pitchoff, Long 
Pond, and Porter ; and, stretching along toward the west, a 
long line of giants, are the Gothics, Basin, Marcy, Golden, 
Mclntyre, and the mountains west of Indian Pass. Nearer 
are the cleared fields of North Elba, and the old John Brown 
homestead. At our feet are the waters of Mirror Lake, and 
the collection of native and summer cottages constituting the 
hamlet of Lake Placid. 

The house has a front of over 200 feet, is four stories high, 
with piazzas on every side, affording choice of wind or sun, 
and with recent additions affording accommodations for nearly 
400 guests. The parlors and dining-room have each an area 
of about 3,000 square feet. It is lighted by electricity. A 
hydraulic pump forces water to all parts of the house, and. 



Lake Placid. 93 

with hose attachment, is guard against possible fire. The bed- 
ding, carpets, etc., came from Arnold, Constable & Co. The 
beds are of woven wire, and with hair mattresses. The sani- 
tary conditions are believed to be perfect. Telegraph office in 
the house. 

The Messrs. Stevens are also owners of considerable real 
estate lying along shore and between Mirror Lake and Lake 
Placid. This property has been laid out in building lots. 
Several cottages stand here, others will be built soon, and, in 
the near future, one may reasonably expect to see this entire 
slope occupied by elegant villas or cozy cottages, as individual 
taste may dictate. This is a very desirable place for a summer 
cottage, being sightly and cool; while its elevated position 
and the nature of the soil places it above any suggestion of 
unwholesome air or conditions. 

Furnished cottages and camps and camp or cottage sites, 
fronting directly on the lake, may also be obtained of the three 
companies who now virtually control the shores of Lake Placid 
on very reasonable terms by applying to Clarence M. Noble, 
at Lake Placid. 

Stages : O'Brian & Vial's stages run to connect with all trains 
at Saranac Lake, nine miles distant. Fare $1.25. Agnew 
Brothers' stages connect with evening trains, north and south, 
at Westport. Distance, 35 miles. Fare, $4. 

The Lake Placid House is at the head of Mirror Lake, 
east of the Stevens House, with room for about 60, Rates 
unknown. For particulars address Geo. W. Baldwin. 

Lake Placid is over at the north and, although distant from 
Mirror Lake but a Uttle way, the two are effectually separated 
by the ridge that runs between them. It is in shape oblong, 
something over four miles in length and about 2 broad, meas- 
uring through or between the islands, of which there are three, 
called respectively Hawk, Moose and Buck. Hawk is small, 
but Moose and Buck are large, beautiful islands in a line from 
the first toward the southwest, the three dividing the sheet 
into what are locally known as the east and west lakes. 



94 



The Adirondacks. 






Whiteface Inn, formerly the Westside Hotel, is near the 
southern ext remity of the lake and about 40 feet above its 

surface. In front, a 
broad passage leads 
into the East Lake. 
Through this is seen 
the striking b 1 u ff 
known as the Devil's 
Pulpit, the mountains 
around Wilmington 
Pass, and in the dist- 
ance, Marcy and oth- 
er peaks. The West 
Lake, str etching 
northeast, forms the middle ground of a 
picture of which the distance is the 
rugged and noble contour of White- 
face — a view pronounced by many the 
finest of this famous peak. Behind 
and on either hand is the forest into which run pleasant walks 
and bridle paths, one of the latter extending to the top of Col- 
born Peak, a half mile distant. The house is three stories, 
with spacious rooms, and wide, double piazzas on the north, 
south and east sides. Mrs. M. S. Elmendorf, who so success- 
fully conducted the old Lake Placid House for the past two or 
three seasons, is the manager. It is designed to make this a 
first-class house in all respects, as it has a backing among in- 
fluential people which makes such a result possible, even if 
the experience of the present manager is not a guarantee that 
whatever is undertaken will be accomplished in the best of 
shape. Many decided improvements have been made for the 
opening. Next year it is proposed to tear down the present 
structure and have a larger and more complete building for 
the reception of guests. The rates for board are $3.00 per 
day, $18.00 per week, with special terms for along stay. Ad- 
dress at Lake Placid. 




Lakf Placid. 95 

Near by is Camp Pinafore owned by E. D. Bartlett. It is 
one of the most extensive camps of the wilderness and highly 
artistic as a whole. 

Castle Rustico on the west shore opposite Moose Island 
is an immense suructure of logs, rough outside and rustic in 
finish. W. F. Leggett, proprietor. It is open for the enter- 
tainment of guests. Rates unknown. 

Under-Cliff is on the west shore well up towards the head 
of the lake. The woods here are unbroken save an opening 
among the trees just sufficient to give place for the various 
little buildings and the larger central one made common for all 
guests. Back of it towards the west stretch the virgin forests 
climbing to the top of Mt. McKenzie. Near by are pleasant 
coves and streams and woodsy paths. Nature made the place 
charming with many desirable features and an environment of 
lovely things. A lover of nature has beautified it and made it 
available. Dr. Charles D. Alton, of Hartford, Connecticut, 
is the magician, and his magic wand has opened up one of the 
charming places of this region. Originally the summer camp 
of a physician who felt the need of occasional rest from pro- 
fessional duties it was often occupied by patients who were 
friends as well, then of others who were not patients, but 
were attracted by the beauties of the place and the geniality 
of the host, until making a virtue of what seemed almost a 
necessity, the camp was thrown open to the public generally, 
and as such became a decided success, with only so much of 
the sanatarium about it, as must exist where the controlling 
spirit unites an enthusiasm for his profession with a natural 
love for healthful outdoor sports. Under the Doctor's care it 
grew from a single camp to a little village of tents and rustic 
cottages, with a larger central building and assembly room, re- 
sembling some of the larger private camps of note in the 
Adirondacks. In the words of Dr. Alton, "The beef, iron and 
wine of nature's laboratory are here ; ozone and electrical 
change without measure," and in addition will be found a very 
satisfactory bill of fare with other things in keeping. Address 
until July i, Hartford, Conn. Through the summer address 
at Lake Placid. 



96 The Adirondacks. 

Chubb River, the outlet of Lake Placid, runs toward the 
southwest, and in circling around toward the east approaches^ 
quite near to Paradox Pond, and soon after joins with the 
Au Sable to pass through Wilmington Notch. 

The Elba House, on the main road, two miles south of 
Lake Placid, will provide for 16 boarders. Rates $2.50 per 
day; $10.00 to $15.00 per week. Open from June ist to No- 
vember 15th. R. E. Fisher, proprietor. P. O. Lake Placid. 

Ray Brook. House, 5 miles west of the Elba House and 3 
miles from Saranac Lake, will provide for 40 guests. Open 
from June to November. Rates $3.00 per day; $10.00 to 
$17.00 per week. Duncan Cameron, proprietor. Post ofifice 
address, Ray Brook. 

The narrative portions of these pages left us tearing our- 
selves away from the proffered hospitaHties of the John Brown 
farm, after which we sought entertainment at Lyons' Hotel. 
The following morning took us to Lake Placid, where we 
nearly succeeded in getting a cold bath, thanks to our belief 
that we knew perfectly well how to manage an Adirondack 
boat, after which, fortified with a dinner, we succeeded in re- 
moving Att. from the presence of a fascinating divinity in 
calico, and started for Saranac Lake. 

Saranac Lake of then and now differs somewhat- It did 
not impress me favorably at the time, and we went direct to 
Martin's. The place held no visible promise of its future then, 
but nature had made it the natural outlet to the great northern 
lake country, and now — in combination with its porous soil, 
the Chateaugay railway. Dr. Trudeau, and Milo B. Miller — 
has it taken a boom that promises to be of the most substantial 
and lasting kind. It is a pretty little town, of seven to eight 
hundred native inhabitants, lying low in the valley ; busy and 
full of enterprise. Around it are protecting hills, and, farther 
back, mountains. Between the hills run valleys from north, 
east and south, uniting here so that it is approached by level I 



'It 



Saranac Lake. 9; 

roads, winding through the lowlands, from either side. It 
shows a picturesque blending of the primitive forms of old 
times with the swell structures of prosperous later days, since 
it went forth that here was the health centre of the wilderness. 
It has two churches — Methodist and Episcopal — a graded 
school, water supply for street and dwellings, stores and hotels, 
and telegraphic and telephonic communication with the sum- 
mer hotels of the lake region and the outer world. 

The Adirondack Sanitarium is a practical appHcation of 
the good to be had here. It is situated a mile below the river, 
on a bluff, commanding a grand mountain view toward the 
north and east, and well protected from the prevailing western 
wind. Dr. Alfred L. Loomis, of New York, is examining phy- 
sician. The institution is under the immediate supervision of 
Dr. E. L. Trudeau, assisted by Dr. C. T. Wicker. Appli- 
cants must be examined either by Dr. Loomis, in New York, 
or Dr. Trudeau, at Saranac Lake. It is not intended as an 
asylum for hopeless cases; but to put within reach of sufferers 
from incipient pulmonary complaints, whose means are limited, 
the advantages to be derived from the Adirondack climate, a 
simple, out-of-door life, and good hygienic surroundings, with 
suitable medical treatment. It consists of a handsome central 
building, containing dining-room, offices, etc., and outlying 
cottages, accommodating two to four patients each. The 
Sanitarium accommodates about sixty patients. A charge of 
$5.00 per week is made for each. This is below the actual 

cost pro rata^ but the deficiency is made up by annual sub- 
scriptions. Dr. Trudeau's experience has made him a strong 
advocate of the systematic open-air treatment of consumptives, 
which is carried out at the institution in most cases, and a 
characteristic scene in mid-winter is that of a dozen or more 
patients swathed in wrappers of wool and fur, ranged, sardine- 
like, side by side on the piazza in comfortable steamer chairs, 
chatting or reading, or engaged in such light occupations as 
are possible with thickly gloved fingers, often remaining out 
in what may be called bad weather even, from nine o'clock in 
the morning until sun-set, excepting during the interval taken 



98 



The Adirondacks. 



for dinner. Others drive, muffled in furs, or where strength 
permits — thickly clad and well protected from the cold — in- 
dulge in long tramps through the woods or over the hills on 
snow shoes. 

This, the terminus of the Chateaugay Railroad, has excel- 
lent summer service. Commencing June 22, a train will leave 
at 8:30 A. M., and reach New York city at 8:50 p. m., shorten- 
ing the time over three hours between these points, including 
a 30 minute stop at Plattsburgh, for dinner. 

The Berkeley House, with capacity for twenty guests and 
the "Adirondack" providing for as many more, are the vil- 
lage hotels with a local and commercial patronage. Linwoodl 
Cottage, located on the main street of the village is a modern] 
cottage of ten rooms, pleasant and attractive. Open summer! 
and winter. For particulars as to rates, etc., address Frank] 
A. Mantz, Manager. 

Martin's Hotel is on high ground, on the road to the lake.i 
The proprietor, William F. Martin, was the founder of the] 
famous old Saranac Lake House. He is an enthusiastic hun- 
ter and obliging withal. Capacity 50. Rates, $2.50 per day;j 
$10 to $15 per week, open May to December. 




Lower Saranac Lake is a little less than five miles long by | 
one and a quarter wide. It is longest from^ Ampersand in a ; 



'W#M;^.-«1' 




HOTEL AMPERSAND FROM THE WEST. 



Saranac Lake. 99-a 

south-westerly course to its inlet. Symmetrical as a whole, it 
is separated into several natural divisions by outspread penin- 
sulas and chain-like groups of islands ; there being of the lat- 
ter (counting; as such several huge rocks) one for every week 
of the year. 

A lock, built at the rapids between this lake and Round 
Lake renders the river above more easily navigable than here- 
tofore. It was intended that a steamboat should run the 
present season between the hotels of the Lower Lake and 
Bartlett's at the foot of the Upper Saranac, connecting there 
with the steamer from Saranac Inn, but the proposed extension 
of railroad from Tupper Lake to Saranac Lake via, Saranac 
Inn made the scheme an unpromising one and at this writing 
the prospects are that travelers will go as heretofore in twos 
and threes by the always interesting — if less comfortable — 
guide-boats. 

Hotel Ampersand, at the extreme northerly end of the 
lake was completed and opened November ist, 1888. In 
choosing a name for the new house, the above was deemed 
fitting and appropriate from the vicinage of the shapely moun- 
tain that looms up in the south beyond the lake, at whose base 
nestles a pretty pond bearing the same name, with its outlet 
in a little stream that finds its devious way at last into Ra- 
quette River. The hotel was built and opened by the Sara- 
nac Lake Hotel Company. It is roomy, rambling and artis- 
tic — full of unsuspected corners and pleasant surprises. It is 
picturesque in its commanding position on a slight eminence, 
surrounded by pines, hemlocks and balsams, with white birches 
gleaming here and there among their more sombre neighbors. 
During the past winter an " annex " for the accommodation 
of young men has been added, with a large exercising room. 
Also an addition of 82 feet to the west wing and 44 feet to 
the east wing. The hotel now contains 146 bed rooms, 68 of 
which have fire places. The upper rooms of the new addition 
have private bath-rooms attached. An elevator makes all 
floors almost equally desirable. The house is heated throughout 



• ■■■■'■' <^^ \ >> N\^~ - ^\M't- 




SARANAC LAKE FROM HOTEL AMPERSAND. 



Hotel Ampersand. 



99-B 



with steam and lighted by gas. Bath-rooms are on every floor. 
The main office is a large room with two large fire places. 
It opens on one side into the spacious dining room and on the 




HOTEL AMPERSAND, OFFICE. 

other into a reception room, ladies billiard, reading and writing 
rooms and parlor. The piazzas are broad, extending along 
the entire front and the east side of the house. The hotel is 
open all the year, the protecting trees that shield its winter 
guests from too severe winds affording a grateful shade to its 
summer visitors. The Post Office " Ampersand" and tele- 
phone, telegraph and a general store are in the hotel. A ten- 
nis court and base ball field afford opportunity for outdoor 
sports for every one. The accompanying cuts show glimpses 
of the house in summer and winter and a view of the lake 
from the piazza. Board $21.00 and upwards per week. 
Transient rates, $4.00 per day. For special rates and par- 
ticulars address the Saranac Lake Hotel Company, Amper- 
sand, N. Y. 

C. M. Eaton, and his partner, W. G. Young, the managers, 
represent energy and enterprise and a knowledge of the 



The Adirondacks. 99-C| 

minutia of hotel service that ensures good management and 
smooth working throughout. At the beginning, the Amper- 
sand took position as a popular favorite. With a generous 
freedom of management not often equalled it has continued 
so. It is a house about which little can be found to criticize. 
The Saranac Lake House is near the northern extremity 
of the Lower Saranac, one and a half miles from the depot. 
(Stage 50 cents). It is oftener spoken of as " Miller's " than 
by its proper name. Good taste is displayed in the general 
management, and it is justly reckoned among the desirable re- 
sorts of the north. It is Democratic in tendency, breezy and 
delightful with its ever changing patronage. Architecturally 
it is one of the most attractive of Adirondack hotels. Large 
fire-places have been built in many of the rooms, and the en- 
tire establishment furnished with necessary conveniences. The 
greater portion of the sleeping rooms are large, well lighted 
and ventilated, and arranged in suites of from two to six, com- 
municating. The piazza fronting the lake affords a pleasant, 
covered promenade, and the parlors look out on one of the 
loveliest of quiet Adirondack scenes. Across the bay, at the 
right, the shore rises abruptly to a considerable height. At the 
left, near by, is a dense grove of cedar, balsam and tamarack, 
with pleasant walks and arbors. Beyond is the broad lake? 
with its islands and distant mountains. The telegraph, tele- 
phone and a branch post office in the hotel. Parties can 
leave New York at 7:30 p. m., and arrive in time for dinner. 
Returning by morning train, arriving in New York at 7^p. m. 
This house has a capacity for 250 guests. Rates $3 to $4 per 
day, $14 to $28 per week. 

D. J. GiLLiGAN is proprietor of the Saranac Lake House, 
succeeding Milo B. Miller, who has so long and so success- 
fully conducted it. Mr. Gilligan was formerly proprietor of 
the Burleigh House and Fort Ticonderoga Hotel, where he 
proved an efficient and thoroughly competent hotel man, and 
under him the house must sustain the excellent reputation it 
has deservedly won under its late management. In the office, 
old friends will find the ever courteous and obHging clerk. 




THE ALGONQUIX. 



Lower Saranac Lake. 99-E 

H. H. Tousley, late of the Alexander House, whom it is a 
pleasure to commend. Guides, boats and cam]) supplies and 
hunting and fishing requisites can be had here on application. 
The Algonquin (formerly Alexander House) has been pur- 
chased by and is now under the management of John Harding, 
a graduate of Paul Smith's famous hostlery, and for the past 
two years associate manager of the Hotel Ampersand. The 
house stands on high ground commanding a comprehensive view 
of the lake, its islands and the mountains beyond. This is com- 
paratively a new house, finely finished in natural woods, richly 
decorated^ and furnished luxuriously. The sleeping rooms are 
large above the average ; the beds of the best. It has high 
ceilings and large windows. It has open fire-places, affording 
ventilation, and, on occasion, necessary heat. It has wide 
piazzas on three sides, giving 300 feet of promenade protected 
from rain and sun. The grounds are extensive, having three- 
fourths of a mile of lake front, with a beautiful sand beach, 
space for out-door amusements in way of tennis court, croquet, 
etc., and pleasant walks that penetrate the thick woods, afford- 
ing means of open or covered promenade as may seem pleas- 
ant. Stages connect with all trains; fare 50 cents. Telegraph 
in the house. Modern conveniences are here including 
electric bells. A livery will be maintained by the proprietor 
1 and single or double carriages furnished at established prices* 
I while boats, comfortably large and steady, or of the cranky 
j Adirondack build, as preferred, can be had, with guides and 
all the requirements for hunting and fishing. A special feature 
of the Algonquin, much affected by believers in the efiicacy of 
out-door air, in shape of commodious tents with carpeted floor 
and all the etceteras of a well furnished bed-room, will be pro- 
vided for those who prefer tent life to the accommodations of 
the hotel. That the table will be first-class goes without ques- 
tion. Rates $3.00 to $4.00 per day, $15.00 to $25.00 per 
week. 

The outlet is about three miles southeast of the Algon- 
quin, where it enlarges to form Miller Pond, then con- 



I 



loo The Adirondacks. 

tracting swings gradually around and passes through the vil- 
lage of Saranac. -M 

This entrance to the lake region, always important, is be- 
coming better known, and must in time, by virtue of its posi- 
tion and environment, become one of the gateways on the 
main line of travel, the other being Blue Mountain Lake ; the 
two lorming the terminal stations in the grand round trip 
through the Saranac and Raquette waters, crossing the Upper 
Saranac at its outlet and leading into the wilder sections about 
Big Tupper Lake. 

The morning following our arrival at Martin's (now Mill- 
er's) we took passage in one of Bartlett's freight boats, which 
chanced to be going up with brick and other hotel supplies. 
At the head of the lake, "in the shadow of a great rock," we 
entered the inlet and sailed up through the lily pads, between 
lines of tall dead trees, marking what was once the shores of 
the stream. Something over a mile above we came to the 
falls — but little more than rapids — where the water shoots 
down through the rocky channel, with a swish and a saucy 
curl or two at the bottom. Here we steppcrd ashore, and 
helped to pull the boat up through the cut, then got aboard 
and picked our way slowly up stream. 

We noticed that the boat displaced two inches of water at 
stem and i8 at stern, and we labored with the captain to con- 
vince him of certain facts but he allowed that he knew how 
to load a boat, and we dragged over the sandy bottom into 
Round Lake and up to Bartlett's finally followed by a series 
of swells such as follow in the wake of a deep sea propeller. 

Round Lake is about two and one-half miles in diameter, 
and, as its name implies, nearly round in shape. It contains 
several very pretty rocky islands. The shores are bold, and 
at that time were brilliant in their autumn dress. Passing 
across, we went out on the west side between two great rocks, 
and up a slow stream h°alf a mile, to Bartlett's. 



Upper Saranac Lake. ioi 

The Saranac Club House (formerly Bartlett's) is at the 
foot of a short carry between Round Lake and the Upper 
Saranac. The portage is by cart, costing 50 cents for boat 
and baggage. The traffic to this point is generally by water, 
although possible to reach the house by a road through the 
woods. 

This property has lately been purchased by a company, in- 
corporated as the "Saranac Club" with a charter member- 
ship of 20. The stated objects of the club are, primarily, the 
health, happiness and pleasure of its members, but while the 
accommodations of the house will be largely required for the 
club it will be kept open as a hotel and the public accommo- 
dated to such an extent as may be without inconvenience to 

club members. 

********* 

Gentle reader, if your heart does not bound in sympathy 
with an angler's tale skip this ; it is only a fishy experience. 
While at Bartlett's in '63, we decided to take a trip through 
the upper lake and return (as the course we had marked out 
simply led across the south end), and I thought it would do 
no harm to put out a troUing line — we might strike something. 
So, after dinner, I applied to the alleged clerk for the neces- 
sary articles. He did not appear particularly anxious to 
spring around and wait on people. He was devoted to his 
duties behind a little semi-circular desk, which fenced in one 
corner of the room, and afforded a safe retreat for himself and 
sundry dark-looking bottles. He appeared tired, but said he 
would try to rig me up. In the course of half an hour I 
found him sitting contentedly on the porch, where he had 
stopped to rest, and was soothed with the information that he 
didn't believe there was any use trying to trolL I thought so 
myself, but nevertheless, so long as I had set out with that in- 
tention I proposed to persevere, so he started again. After 
another lapse of valuable time, I found him in the guide-house 
sitting serenely on a dry-goods box, apparently going to sleep. 
At last, however, with the aid of our guide, I secured the 
necessary articles and started. We went and returned, and I 



102 The Adirondacks. 

didn't get a bite. I was surprised, for I fished faithfully. Per- 
haps the velocity of our boat had something to do with our ill 
1 ick, as the "gang" to which a shiner was attached would 
spring out of the water occasionally, and skitter along the sur- 
face like any thing but a fish, but I thought they might over- 
look that little matter. The spirit of Isaac Walton moved 
within me, and I felt the excitement of a veteran angler at the 
very smell of fish. I had admired Murray for his wonderful 
skill in casting flies and things ; devoured the contents of i 
"I go-a-fishing" with avidity, and felt able to play any fish 
and throw any kind of fly in existence In imagination, with 
the great piscatorial lights of the age, I had felt my heart thrill 
at sight of a polywog, and often closed my eyes in an ecstacy 
of bliss, as I thought of the terrific ravings of a half ounce 
sucker when fairly fast. With such feelings surging through 
my breast, we went in to supper. Ah ! can it be possible ? 
Yes, jy^s, it is ! it is ! ! A school of fish-balls within easy reach ! 
I will catch one. But what true fisherman can act the part of 
a butcher? True greatness in that line consists not in the 
amount bagged, but in the m.anner of doing it. My heart 
thrilled with the excitement which the angler feels when the 
gently undulating motion of the atmosphere tells him that his 
game is nigh. I prepared for a cast. A moment's hesitation 
occurred, in which the momentous question presented itself 
whether I had better take my "scarlet dragoon '^ or *'blue- 
tailed-ibies." I tried both, but not a ripple stirred the quiet 
depths. Then I tried a spoon. Now I contend that it re- 
quires a great deal of skill to cast a spoon properly for a fish- 
ball, especially at this season of the year. Carefully I played 
it around over the bread; dragged it slowly across the pota- 
toes, skittered it lightly over the butter, and let it drop where 
I knew the wary creatures were lying in wait. Slowly it set- 
tled down, lightly as the dew into the heart of a blushing rose. 
A gentle ripple stirred the surface. I felt intuitively that the 
trying moment had come. A thrill shot up my arm, and 
throughout my body, to the very pit of my stomach, as the 



Exciting Sport. 103 

beautiful creature curled upward and struck — struck hard. 
Then began the struggle for life on the one side against 
science on the other — mind against matter. It is an un- 
doubted fact that an intellectual man, with a good spoon, is 
more than a match for any fish-ball in existance. Carefully I 
played him, for he was a gamey fish-ball. The surrounding 
gravy was lashed into fury, and foamed white as the driven 
snow, but the cruel spoon held him, and, with a sullen shak- 
ing, he rested on the bottom — preparing for another run. 
Now he darts away like a flash of light, and is brought up by 
my gradually, though firmly-compressing arm ; then he turned? 
and clove his native element as the thunder-bolt might cleave 
a 'Summer squash. But the spoon brought him up once more, 
ar:d he turned directly toward me. It was a critical moment — 
a moment of terrible suspense. 

" Give him the butt !" screamed the Professor, dodging be- 
hmd the teapot; "give him the butt ! — they always do." 

" Stand firm. Professor !" I cried, wrought up to the high- 
est pitch of excitement as the enraged fish-ball sprang into the 
air, and made directly for me with my mouth wide open : 
"stand firm, and the victory is ours." 

I gave him the butt as he came, and the delicate rod bent 
as a reed shaken in the wind. Oh ! the terrific fire that blazed 
from the eye of that fish-ball will haunt me till my dying day. 
Rage, agony, despair, all blended in one, as, shaking the spark- 
ling drops of gravy from his gleaming sides, he sprang entirely 
over us — plunged downward on the other side. Again and 
again he renewed the attack. But I desist. Suffice it to say 
that, in less than an exciting hour and fifty-nine minutes sport, 
I succeeded in safely landing that heroic creature and laid 
him — a conquered fish-ball — at my feet. Science had again 
triumphed. 

Mr. Murray says, " the highest bodily beautitude 1 ever ex- 
pect to reach, is to sit in a boat with John at the paddle, and 
match again a Conroy rod against a three-pound trout." As 
for vie^ give me my trusty spoon — or even a sharp stick. I 



I04 The Adirondacks. 

care not who sits at the paddle, and let 7ne once more feel the 
deathless joy of a single-handed encounter with an untamed 
fish-ball, and I'll murmur not, though a yawning legislature 
opens and sucks me in forever. Pardon this ebullition ; I can 
never keep cool when excited. And righi here, let me lift my 
voice against the horrible practice of some coarse natures, 
whose soul never swept upward to a spiritual conception of 
flies ; and who, with no excuse, save perhaps that of hunger, 
can, with a common hook and line, and filthy worms /or bait, 
snatch a kingly trout bald-headed, and lay him gasping in un- 
comfortable terror on the ground. I cannot find words of 
condemnation strong enough to express my horror of this 
barbarous practice, which is extremely vulgar, contributes 
nothing to science, and is, in all probability, excessively annoy- 
ing to the fish. 

On the contrary, the scientific alurement of a denizen of 
the aqueous fluid to the one more volatile is an achievement 
worthy of a great intellect. The skillful playing prepares the 
noble creature for its final transition, which, if not actually 
attended with pleasurable sensations to the subject in question, 
is owing to its lack of appreciation of the important part it is 
playing in the march of intellect. It is also more christian- 
like and refined than bull-baiting, because less dangerous ; and 
we cannot wonder that great minds — divines even — are some- 
times translated by its wonderful fascinations. 

Upper Saranac Lake rests at 1,577 feet above tide. It is 
eight miles long, measuring north and south \ about two miles 
wide at its broadest places ; and is divided into unequal lobes 
by points projecting from its east and west shores. It dis- 
charges toward the east from its south end, making a rapid 
descent of about 35 feet in 100 rods, to Bartlett's. It contains 
a number of islands ; those at the south being rounded or 
level ; those at the north, bold and rocky. The shores partake 
of the nature of the islands ; are thickly wooded, and rise into 
hills, which can hardly lay claim to the title of mountains, but 
which are picturesque and attractive. In the distance, at the 



Upper SARANyvc Lake. 



105 



^04 <« '«. 



north, is St. Regis Mountains ; away at the east, Whiteface ; 

toward the south-west, Ampersand and Seward. 

McCoy's Rustic Lodge, is at the south end of the Upper 

Saranac, about three miles from Bartlett's. It stands well up 

] above the water on the divide 
between the Saranac, and Ra 
quette Lake waters which latter 
Hows from this point toward tlie 
south. From this point the 
famous Indian Carry extends 
south one mile to Stony-creek 
Ponds, affording a very pleasant 
walk, and is continued around 
them at the west, two miles 
farther, ending at the Raquette 
River. The house is picturesque, 
half log, half frame, and has 
been added to as the necessity 
for greater accommodations 
were felt, and with several de- 
tached cottages of one room 
each in a line along the ridge 
facing the lake, has capacity 
for about 60 guests. It is high^ 
dry and breezy, wholesome of 
itself and in its surroundings. It 
commands a fine view of the lake. 
MAP OF UPPER SARANAC LAKE. Mails aie brought herc and de- 

(From Survey by Dr. S. B. ^ ard.) ° 

part daily by a boat leaving Saranac Lake every morning ex- 
cept Sunday, during the season. Telegraph at Wawbeek, 20 
minutes distant. The Chateaugay railroad brings this point 
within 20 hours of New York city. The proprietor, E. R. 
McCoy, is energetic and obliging. The house is open from 
May I st to November. Rates $2.50 per day; $10.00 to 
$14.00 per week. 




SCAUt 



H/AWATHO ItOOSt 



io6 The Adirondacks. 

Saranac Inn is at the head of the lake about 15 miles 
from Saranac Village, where stages run, connecting with all 
trains. Fare $1.50. A new road, to be opened up soon, will 
reduce the distance to a little more than 10 miles. By water 
from Saranac Inn to Miller's is 20 miles; to Paul Smith's 10^ 
miles. At present the road runs through a picturesque sec- 
tion of the country, finally entering the woods, which in places 
exist in their primeval condition. All the way — except in ex- 
tremely bad weather — the road is in good condition and the 
ride a delightful one. The house stands at a point extending 
out into the lake and commands a broad expanse of water and 
distant mountains equalled nowhere in the Adirondacks, ex- 
cept from the high land between Mirror Lake and Lake Placid. 
The land is dry and porous, the peninsula on which the house 
stands level, and the woods which forms a pleasant feature in 
its surroundings, are grove-like, resembling a cultivated park 
in their shadowy depths. Under its present management the 
Inn has gained the highest praise. The table is exceptionally 
nice. This house has a capacity for 125 guests. Board $3.50 
per day; $17.50 to $30.00 per week, according to rooms. 
The season is from May ist to October 15th. A loop of the 
telegraph extends to this point with office in the hotel. Post- 
office address " Saranac Inn." D. W. Riddle, Manager. 

This place is specially attractive to the fisherman, because 
of the multitude of small ponds and streams adjacent, there 
being within a circuit of three miles over thirty that are recog- 
nized as among the best trout yielding waters of the Adiron- 
dacks. For obvious reasons also, the hunter with limited time, 
will find this available ground. A good road penetrates the 
forests ; an excellent house renders the isolated position com- 
fortable. It is well out in that wilderness which, north, west 
and south, is almost unbroken and impenetrable save over the 
watery highways, where the streams and ponds cover the tract 
like crystal beads on a net-work of silver. Into this labyrinth 
comes the deer who delight in the still water and the tender 
food growing at its edge. With them it is a favorite feeding 



UrrER Saranac Lake. 



107 




ground and they find none better even in the far west. All 
these attractions tend to make the Saranac Inn an unusually 
desirable resort. 

This is a favorite spot with ex-President and Mrs. Cleveland, 
and headquarters during their flying trip to the woods. Dr. 

S. B. Ward, of Albany, 
is, also, a regular visitor 
here; and to him the 
publisher is indebted for 
a copy of the map in- 
corporated in the large 
map of the wilderness 
and shown in these 
pages A pretty little 
church on the hill back 
of the hotel, erected in 
1885, is open for serv- 
ice during the summer. 
A number of very at- 
tractive private camps are on the bay west of the house, and 
at various points south. 

Steamer " Saranac " will run regular trips through the lake 
from Saranac Inn, morning and afternoon, landing visitors at 
all points along the lake and connecting at Bartlett with boats 
on the lower lakes. Saranac Inn Station, on the N. A. R. R. 
is eight miles east of Saranac Inn to which point a stage runs 
from all trains, fare $1.00. Section of the M. V. & N. R. 
R., now being built, runs from Tupper Lake to this point with 
through trains from Grand Central Station, New York city, 
without change of cars. 

Wawbeek Lodge is the name of the new hotel at the 
Sweeney Carry on the west shore opposite the outlet of the 
Upper Saranac; "Wawbeek" is Indian for big rock and was 
suggested by a huge bowlder lying on the hill side. It com- 
mands an extensive view of the lake, a long stretch of water 
toward the north and another down into the deep arm which 
forms the outlet towards the east. It is artistic in design and 



MAP SHOWING THE I5 SQUARE MILES BELONGING TO 
THE SARANAC INN COMPANY. 



io8 The Adirondacks. 

finish. Pure water is there, brought into the house from a 
distant spring, and perfect ventilation and drainage assured. 
Furnished tents are grouped around the house for the accom- 
modation of those who may prefer them to house room. Waw- 
beek Lodge is reached from Saranac Lake Station through the 
Lower Lake and stream by rowboat, or by way of the Northern 
Adirondack Railroad to Tupper Lake Station, thence by stage 
over the new road through the woods. Board per day $4.00 ; 
per week, $17.50 and upwards. Open from May to Novem- 
ber. The manager, T. Edmund Krumbholz, is affable and 
obliging. P. O. "Wawbeek," N. Y. A telegraph station is 
at the house. 

Sweeney Carry extends from Wawbeek west three miles to 
the Raquette River. For transportation of boat and luggage 
across, the price is $1.50. Parties of three can ride over on a 
buckboard for 50 cents apiece. 

Tromblee's is on the Raquette River, at the west end of 
Sweeney Carry. Buckboards can be had here by east coming 
passengers for the three mile trip over, and carrying wagons 
for the boats and luggage. The river above this point is de- 
lightfully picturesque, marks of the desolation caused by the 
flooded flats not being so apparent here as further down. Troll- 
ing for pickerel is the popular sport and yields most satisfac- 
tory results. The house is small, affording accommodations 
for only six or eight people, but it gives an exceedingly good 
dinner. Board $10.00 per week; $2.00 per day. Mail daily 
through the season. Open from May ist to November. 
Oliver Tromblee, proprietor. Post office address, Wawbeek, 
N. Y. It is about 8 miles from Tromblee's Landing by the 
new road to Tupper Lake Station. By river to the foot of 
Tupper Lake the distance is about 1 1 miles. 

The Lower Raquette near the foot of Tupper Lake is, as 
the result of a dam built at Raquette Pond, a perpetual protest 
against the outrages perpetrated in the name of utility, where 
retributive nature, in pursuance of a well-recognized law be- 



Gale. 109-A 

cause of stripped mountain side and barren upland, fails to 
send its old-time supply of rain. In the spring and early sum- 
mer, the water sets back away up to Ra([uette Falls and into 
St6ny Creek Ponds, but later it is allowed to drain low, that 
forsooth, a saw-mill may be fed, exposing hideous, slime- 
covered flats and malaria-breeding pits and the skeletons of 
drowned trees standing and lying prone all along its course. 
These drowned lands are indicated on the map by parallel 
lines. See page 109-F. 

Raquette Pond, terminus of the Northern Adirondack 
Railroad, now called Tupper Lake is two miles below Tup- 
per Lake. Seepage 109-D. 

Downey's Landing is 8 miles beyond Raquette Pond. The 
stream is navigable except for short carries a'round falls and 
rapids. It may be done for pleasure or in case of dire ne- 
cessity, but the more comfortable way is by rail and stage 
from Childwold Station. 

Childwold Station, eight miles south of Saranac Inn Sta- 
tion and 51 miles from Moira. From this point a stage runs 
daily, west to Gale and Childwold Park, seven miles. Fare, $1. 

The Pond View House (P. O. Gale), is situated on the 
shores of Catamount Pond about six miles west of Childwold 
Station. E. P. Gale, proprietor. This of old was a noted 
house of entertainment for sportsmen. Later it has been pro- 
vided with modern conveniences which the old sportsman did 
not consider necessary to his comfort or happiness, and pro- 
visions made to meet the more exacting requirements of tour- 
ists and summer visitors. New parts have been added 
until now accommodations are offered for about 100 guests. 
The rates are $2.00 per day; $8.00 to $12.00 per week. 
Special rates are offered guests who may come for spring fish- 
ing or fall hunting, and those who stay through the entire 
season. The house is open the year round. Boats and com- 
petent guides can be secured here and all the requirements of 
'hunting and fishing can be furnished by the proprietor. A 
large farm connected with the hotel supplies fresh milk and 



Childwold Park. 109-c 

eggs with vegetables in their season. The Post office, known 
as Gale, is in one of the buildings connected with the house, 
and the proprietor of the house is postmaster. The place as 
a whole presents the appearance of rustic comfort, which with 
the reasonable terms offered insures a very satisfactory pa- 
tronage. 

Lake Massawepie is the fountain head of Grass river 

one of the best trout streams in Northern New York — and a 
noted resort for deer. Mr. Addison Child, to whom this sec- 
tion owes much 
of its prosperi- 
ty, and Mr. 
Henry G.Dorr, 
of Boston, to- 
gether own the 
whole western 
half of the 
township, and 
have preserved 
under the state 
law, 5, 000 acres 
here, embrac- 
ing Lake Mas- 
sawepie and six contributary sheets of water that encircle it, 
as a game and pleasure park. 

Childwold Park House is on the east shore of Massa- 
wepie Lake, flanked by a number of attractive Queene Anne 
cottages. This place with the opening of the Northern Adi- 
rondack Railroad to Tupper Lake has been made easily acces- 
sible. It has natural attractions of broken and picturesque 
wilderness surroundings, and a broad, beautiful lake with nu- 
merous small ponds adjacent. The house stands on high 
ground rising considerably above the water, with piazzas on 
three sides, and a belvedere, rising 78 feet above the lake. 
Boats, and hunting and fishing supplies, can be obtained here 
with competent men for camp or trail. It is reached by stage 




I09-D The Adirondacks. 

from Childwold Station on the Northern Adirondack railroad, " 
7 miles distant. Fare, $i.oo. Price for board $3 per day; 
$14 to $21 per week, according to room and length of stay. 
Wm. F. Ingold, of " The MagnoHa," Florida, manager. 

Convenient railroad service is maintained from New York 
and Boston. Wagner sleeping cars leave both cities daily ex- 
cept Saturday, and run through to Childwold Station without 
change. A telegraph line and daily mail are in operation dur- 
ing the season. 

The Lower Raquette can be reached via Potsdam. 
There are small houses at intervals along the road and river, 

where entertainment can be had at from 
$1.00 to $1.50 per day. The Forest 
House is at Stark's Falls, 22 miles 
from Potsdam. The Jordon House is 
6 miles farther, opposite the mouth of 
the Jordan River. The " Kildare Club," 
of New York, composed of members of 
the Vanderbilt family and friends, has a 
hunting lodge near Jordan Lake and a 
park of several thousand acres lying 
along the river. Kildare Station, on the N. A. Railroad and 
a new road thence to Jordan Lake are for the special benefit of 
the club. 

Childwold, 3 miles from Childwold Park, 36 miles from 
Potsdam. It has an elevation of about 1,450 feet above tide 
in a belt of good agricultural land on which a colony of farm- 
ers are thriving. 

TUPPER Lake (village), P. O. and terminus of the N. A. R. 
R., 56 miles south of Moira, is on the east shore of Raquette 
Pond, two miles below the point where Tupper Lake hangs 
like a pocket on the south side of Raquette River. It is a 
revelation of thrifty and sudden growth, reminding one 
of those marvelous western towns that seem to spring up 





TuppER Lake. 1C9-E 

almost in a night. When John Hiird built the N.. A. R. R. 
south to this point to subserve his vast lumber interests, this 
was practically virgin forest. The first train ran over the road 

^^ July I St, 1890. Now there are 

PBPBoftL^B^ grouped about its terminus over a 

■ CmS fMOlRA 111 

Ij^J I hundred buildmgs of various sizes 

and conditions. A church (build- 
ing), three hotels, two school houses 
(a larger one building), and two 
steam saw-mills, one belonging to 
the owner of the railroad with ca- 
pacity for sawing 200,000 feet of 
lumber per day and a smaller one 
belonging to the Hobson Lumber 
Co., with a daily capacity for sawing 
45,000 feet This will be the junc- 
tion of the N. A. R. R. with the A. & St. L. Ry., a section of 
which extending from this point to Saranac Inn and Saranac 
Lake village, will be constructed and in operation in August. 
Stages run daily to Wawbeek, 8 miles, fare $1.00. Steam- 
boats to the various hotels on Tupper Lake, fare 50 cents to 
li.oo. 

Tupper Lake is 1,554 feet above tide. It is nearly seven 
miles long and three broad. It has 25 islands, some level and 
covered with thrifty trees, some barren and rocky, rising steeply 
from the water. Long, or County Island is the largest, being 
nearly a mile in length. A precipice on its west side is known 
as the Devil's Pulpit. The surrounding country is wild but 
not grand with mountain heights. Mount Morris, at the south- 
east, is the most important elevation of the section. Bog 
River comes picturesquely down over the face of the o ugh 
rocks at the head of the lake where a ruined saw mill marks 
a past '' effort." 

Mount Morris House is on the east side of the lake near 
the outlet. Occupancy uncertain at this writing. 

Redside Camp is on a high bluff, where Redside Brook 
empties into the lake, a half mile south of the Mt. Morris 



I09-F The Adirondacks. 

House. It stands in a thrifty grove of second growth timber^ 
and commnds a wide and beautiful view of the lake and the 
country beyond. Twelve to fifteen guests can be cared for 
here by Martin Moody. Perhaps Mrs. Moody has more to 
do with the providing for guests than " Mart," but whoever 
the responsible party may be, they furnish good, wholesome, 

substantial fare 
to make the 
heart of the 
hunter and 
fisherman glad. 
The Post office 
called '' Moo- 
dy" is located 
here also, and 
the proprietor 
of the house is 
Board costs $1.50 per 
day; $10.00 to $12.00 per week. 
The new building in process of 
construction is expected to be ready 
for guests by the first of August, 
when accommodations will be of- 
fered for 50 guests. Mr. Moody has 
been noted for years as the mighty 
hunter, and where he fails in knowl- 
edge as to the best place for game or the best way of secur- 
ing it, there is little hope that others will succeed. 

TuppER Lake House is on the west shore of the lake near 
its south end. It is about 35 miles, as the way goes, from 
Saranac Lake (station), and can be reached from that direction 
during the summer by rowboat, making a pleasant day's 
journey. The opening up of this section by the Northern 
Adirondack Railroad, penetrating to the wildest portion of the 
wilderness, comes as a surprise to people generally and the ex- 
cellent train service maintained makes it possible to leave New 
York in the evening at 6:25 and reach the Tupper Lake House 




TUPPER Lake. 109-G 

in time for dinner the next day. Fare from New York to 
Tupper Lake, $12.40; round trip, $22.25. ^^ ^s a source of 
considerable surprise to visitors who had thought to bury them- 
selves in this far-away corner of the wilderness, to find a daily 
mail maintained, the news of the world in their familiar even- 
ing paper of the day before laid by their plate at tea time, and 
all the necessaries with many of the perishable dainties from 
the centres of civilization following them and contributing to 
their enjoyment of the woodsy things which nature so bounti- 
fully provides. This may be fairly called the geograi)hical 
centre of the wild lake region. It is on the eastern edge of 
the Mud Lake country which is probably the least known and 
visited of any part of the wilderness. Dr. Alfred L. Loomis 
says it is "the best location for sport, and as healthful as any 
in the Adirondacks," and the Doctor is good authority on both 
questions. The house will accommodate about 100 guests. 
It is provided with open fire-places in parlor and principal 
bedrooms, is lighted with gas, has pure spring water brought 
through pump-logs from a mountain spring, and is furnished 
comfortably and with the best of beds throughout. 

John F. Hatch, who for a number of years kept a very ac- 
ceptable farm house resort in the Au Sable valley, resurrected 
the Mt. Morris House from oblivion, last year, to make it a 
popular place once more, now takes charge of larger interests 
at the Tupper Lake House. If the earnest effort of the pro- 
prietor, ably seconded by Mrs. Hatch and the accomplished 
daughter of the house, can make a resort pleasant and agree- 
able, no place in the Wilderness can rank higher than the Tup- 
per Lake House, which is saying a good deal. It will be 
open from May ist until late into the season of fall hunting. 
Price for board, $3.00 per day; $14.00 to $21.00 per week, 
with special rates for early and late visitors. The supply and 
provision store established here for some years will be con- 
tinued under Mr. Hatch, who will furnish New York goods at 
! New York retail prices with the cost or transportation only 
added. 

The ^' Lakeside Club," of New York, who own the property, 




o 
X 

< 

04 

Ed 
Oi 

ti 



Hiawatha House. i i i 

come here annually and occupy private rooms in the building 
set aside for their special service. 

Little Tupper Lake is an easy half day's journey at the 
south, the most tedious part of this way being the two-mile 
carry from Bog River into Round Pond, where the thrifty 
wagoner will charge you $2.00 for boat and luggage. 

********** 

The Hiawatha House is at the south end of Indian 
Carry, delightfully located among the trees on the north side 
of the first of the Stony Creek Ponds. Here it is wild on 
every side. Deer come to feed about the borders of the 
lakelet, and when followed by dogs often take to its waters. 
Charles Wardner who came as manager first is now proprietor 
of the Hiawatha House. He is affable and ready in service, 
aud has earned for himself very high praise from new guests, 
and a reputation that calls back many old friends. He has 
made a success out of this place which, possessing many de- 
sirable features, was for lack of just such a man for many 
years a dismal failure. The house will provide for about 30 
guests. Post-office address, Wawbeek. Conveyance across 
the Indian Carry from this point costs 75 cents for boat and 
luggage. 

Stony Creek Ponds are three in number. The first and 
third are small ; the middle one about a mile the longest way. 
A fancied resemblance to a familiar article has led to their 
being occasionally called " Spectacle " Ponds. 

Stony Creek, applied to the outlet of the ponds, is a 
misnomer. It is about three miles long, slow, sluggish, and 
winding. Its marshy shores are lined with tall grass and the 
sprawling, ragged, swamp-maples, which seem to flourish best 
in a watery soil. From its mouth, down the Raquette to Big 
Tupper Lake, is 20 miles ; to Raquette Falls, seven. Ra- 
quette Falls is 12 to 15 feet in height, with one mile of rapid 
water above. 

Raquette Falls Hotel of to-day is a much more preten- 
tious house than the one of old in the days of " Mother John- 
son." It will provide for 30 guests, and affords a general stop- 



112 The Adirondacks. 

ping place for those who would indulge in the excellent hunt- 
ing and fishing of this section. It usually divides the long 
stretch between the Saranacs and Long Lake with a substantial 
dinner (75 cents), or a welcome night's rest to the round trip- 
per. Now instead of the old stone-boat drawn by oxen, buck- 
boards on which the voyager can ride comfortably under the 
shadow of his inverted boat, cross the intervening i^ miles to 
the navigable waters above. Each passenger is charged 50 
cents, and each boat with its baggage, $1.50. Board $2. per 
day $12. per week, Wm. McClelland proprietor, P. O.Wawbeek. 
Resuming once more if you please, the thread of our oft- 
broken narrative, we will proceed on our journey southward. 
When we followed the ox-sled over the carry in 1873, a steam- 
boat whistle had never been heard in this region ; since then 
they have signalled each other across the cany, and a regular 




UP THE RAQUETTE. 



line is a possibility of the near future. The river is wonderfu| 
in its solemn beauty. The water in the shallows is amber, a|| 
a greater depth red, then a rich brown. Here it appears almostj, 
like ink in its blackness. Sluggish in motion, it fills its bed an# 
seems fairly to round up in the centre. Great, shaggy, twisted ! 
cedars line its banks, their branches reaching out toward the 
light and downward toward the water, the sides away from 
the river limbless and verdueless. So still it runs that it appears 
more like a river of black glass than water. It has undermined 
the trees until they have fallen over and stand at every con- 
ceivable angle, and, while yielding, they have curled upward 
with the even sweep of a scimeter, while the smaller limbs, 
seemingly alarmed at their too near approach to the water, 
grow back upon themselves and hang in great hooks and solid 
festoons from their leaning supports, the whole mirrored in the 

. 

I 



The Adirondacks, 113 

glassy surface where we seem to float midway between the 
heavens above and the heavens below. 

About five miles abov^e Raquette Falls, Cold River, coming 
down from Mount Seward on the east, supplies by considerable, 
the largest volume of the two streams which here meet. Above 
this we pick our way carefully. We have left the cedars, passed 
through the maples, now stripped of their foliage, and come 
out on a natural meadow, where the coarse hay is cut and 
piled up on platforms, there to stay until the ice shall render 
it accessible. Over the shallow outlet we go, through the tall 
grass, where mounds of sticks and reeds show the presence 
of a colony of muskrats, out into Long Lake, past the Lsland 
House, where a jolly party of spiritual fellows are having 
a loud time, and well on into the night, rap for admission at the 
door of the Long Lake Hotel. 

Long Lake is nearly 14 miles in length and about i mile 
in width at the widest part, which is near its outlet. It runs in 
a northeasterly direction, receives the waters of the Raquette 
River at its head and gives them up to the Raquette River at 
its foot, which, flowing northward, and passing within about 2 
miles of Upper Saranac Lake, turns toward the west, touching 
the foot of Tupper Lake, thence northwesterly past Potsdam to 
the St. Lawrence. 

Long Lake contains several islands ; one, nearly midway in 
its length, is called Round Island, and resembles Dome Island 
of Lake George. 

The Island House, near the outlet, affords entertainment 
to such as may at any time from choice or necessity be at this 
end of the lake. 

Owl's Head Mountain, near the head of the lake, on the 
west, is marked on the map as being 2,82^ feet above tide ; but 
as Long Lake is 1,614 above tide, this isn't much of a mountain 
after all. To the west the country is comparatively level ; on 
the east is Mount Kempshall ; on the north is seen the blue 
serrated summit of Mount Seward, 4,384 feet above tide. 

A number of private camps are scattered along the lake, 
notably those of Senator Piatt and of Rev. Dr. Duryea, near the 
north end. Toward the south end some considerable attempts 
have been made at cultivation. The land, however, while apparent- 



ii4 The Adirondacks. 

ly promising well, is cold and poorly adapted to farming pur- 
poses. 

The Lake House appears first on the left as we approach , 
from the north. It is one of those quiet lakeside resorts that | 
supplies the sportsman with all the necessaries of life, and is 
the gathering-place of the hunter, the fisherman, and of the 
sturdy guide. The house is three stories high, with a double 
piazza, facing the lake. It has an advertised capacity for 60 
guests. Rates, $2.00 per day, $10.00 to $12.00 per week. 
The house is under the management of Mrs. C H. Kellogg 
who for a number of years has very exceptably filled the 
position as hostess at this place. Stage runs daily to Blue 
Mountain Lake to North Creek to connect with the evening 
train south. Fare to railroad, $4.00. 

In front of the house is a sandy beach, that extends down 
into the water, at the north, the long stretch of picturesque 
lake, while just south is a pretty little bay, protected on all 
sides, where the children can boat and fish to their heart's 
content. The road from the east crosses the lake here, over a 
long, floating bridge, which has a raised section to admit of 
the passage of small boats underneath. 

The Sagamore, which stood on the high bluff south of the 
Lake House caught fire November 30th, 1889, and was totally 
destroyed. It is expected it will be rebuilt and ready for occu- 
pancy in 1 89 1. 

Long Lake (village) is on the east side of the lake a half 
mile away, and three and a half miles from the south end. 
Long Lake lumbers some, farms some, trades a little, hunts 
and guides extensively, and makes sporting boats of recog- 
nized build and superior quality. From its somewhat isolated 
position and its lack of proper transportation facilities and 
accommodations in the past, Long Lake has been neglected 
by the sportsman. 

The Long Lake Hotel, Helms & Smith, proprietors, is 
situated at the village. This house is open the year round 
and provides for man and beast at a moderate price. Mails 



Long Lake. jic 

arrive and depart daily. Stage (Concord wagon, Theron 
Smith, proprietor) runs to Blue Mountain Lake during the 
season, leaving in the morning and returning in the afternoon. 
Travelers may leave New York on the 6:25 Adirondack 
sleeper, and reach Long Lake the next day at about 6 p. m. 
The distance to Blue Mountain Lake, by stage road, is nine 
miles. Fare, $1.50. 

A number of gentlemen have secured for a Preserve 4,000 
acres ofland lying on both shores of the lake some distance 
north of Round Island and offer through their agent, camp and 
villa sights of lo-acre lots each, including the game and forest 
privilege of the entire tract, on a three or five years lease 
with the privilege of purchasing at from $250 to $500 
any time during its continuance. Application for purchase 
or lease may be made to Hazard Stevens, Esq., 85 Deavon- 
shire Street, Boston, Mass, or to M. R. Sutton, Agent, Long 
Lake, N. Y. 

The Grove House is about two miles south of the float- 
ing bridge in a grove of tall pines on the abrupt eastern bank 
of the lake, seven miles from Raquette and nine miles from 
Blue Mountain lake, capacity of house, 50, rates, $2.50 per 
day, $10.00 to $14.00 per week, David Helms, proprietor. 
Pleasant features of the place are its open camps and cottages 
with open fire places. Special rates are offered to parties re- 
maining any considerable time. Mr. Helms is a noted guide 
and hunter and his house is a favorite resort for hunters and 
fishermen, who know that his experience and advice may be 
rehed upon. He knows where the trout, the bass and the 
pickerel are to be found in their season ; where the duck 
5wims, and the partridge hides, and the deer runs, and his 
knowledge is freely placed at the service of his visitors. 

The distance from the Grove House to Blue Mountain 
ake, through Forked and Raquette lakes, by boat, is 
ibout ^^ miles. For the last-named route a guide will be re- 
[uired as far as Raquette Lake, where steamers are taken for 
Mue Mountain Lake. 




CHAPTER VIII. 

The Schoolmaster 



E SENT our Saranac guide back, ana m- 
quired for one who understood the Ra- 
quette Lake region. 

" I know the man ycu want,'* said oar 
host, in a way as though he felt himself re- 
sponsible for our future happiness; "Chai 
ley Blanchard knows all about it, just came 
from that region day before yesterday. I'll 
send for him." 

He did so, and soon a little fellow in a 
Garabaldian shirt stood before us. Think- 
ing of the work a guide is expected to do, 
It seemed as though this one was meant for a jcfke or an orna- 
mental head that we would have to carry over the rough 
places. Kellogg must have noticed the look of surprise oa 
our faces, for, taking me aside, he said : 

" Oh, he's all right ; knows the country better'n I do my 
house, and will take you right every time." 

•• Carry a boat too ? " I asked, incredulously gazing at the 
slight figure. 

" Yes, sir! carried a boat, oars and all, over the same route 
a day or two ago. Then he can learn you something — tell 
you all you want to know. There's no need of his gliding at 
all, only he likes it I tell you what, sir, he's qualified for bet- 
ter things. He's — a — school — master ! ! ! " 

Of course we were overwhelmed, and engaged the school- 
master at once, finding him a willing worker, a pleasant 
companion and an exceptionally good g^ide — thoroughly ac- 
quainted with the region through which we were traveling. 

Four miles from Kellogg's we came to the rapids. Here the 
professor and myself took the loose articles, and the school' 




ii8 The Adirondacks. 

master started off with the boat over his head, looking like a 
huge, inverted, pickle-dish on a pair of legs. 

Reader, did you ever assist over one of these portages in 
the forests, where the path never dries, and 
the decayed leaves and vegetable mould 
makes a bottom of black muck, with rocks 
land roots projecting above the surface; which 
'same are stepping-places for the skillful, but 
Jfearful traps for the unwary? 

The guide takes the boat, and you are ex- 
pected to carry the lighter articles. You ad- 
mire him as he starts off lightly along the slippery way. Your 
soul swells with conscious freedom, and you snuff in inspi- 
ration and black flies by the mouthful. You gather up the 
oars, paddle, guns, fishrods, etc., and step out determined to 
show .that you, too, are a natural woodsman. How exhilar- 
ating the action ! You spring from rock to rock, watching 
your feet that they may not get the start of you ; for the solid 
bottom may be anywhere from two inches to two feet below 
the surface. Soon you are busy dodging the bushes, that 
scratch your hands and slap your face without the slightest 
provocation; and, after a while, you observe that the oars 
and other things are getting heavy, and are on a tender place. 
You change, and make it worse. Then you find they have 
got into a disagreeable habit of spreading out at various 
angles — of going on one side of a tree when you had de- 
signed to pass on the other; and you back up for another 
start. You wrench your back and get a crick in the neck in 
the struggle. The guide is disappearing through the trees in 
the distance. Surprise, perspiration, determination, and cob- 
webs, appear on your face ; and the things on your shoulder 
hurt more, and sprawl about worse than ever. You are con- 
scious of an expression like anything but a master of the situ- 
ation; and your load looks, for all the world, like a fully-ex- 
tended umbrella denuded of its covering. You try in vain to 
dodge the various branches that are making unprovoked 




The Carry. 119 

lunges at you. The vines trip you, the stones sh'p from be- 
neath your feet, and roots that look solid give way and let 
you down. You are getting careless of results, 
and take chances that do not always turn out 
well. You step on one end of a root, and the 
other end comes up and pitches a quart or so of 
mud in your face. You forget to select a safe 
place for the next step ; your foot glides gently 
down, and disappears in the inky depths; and, 
in resurrecting it, the other one goes under. 
The chances are that about this time you begin to talk to 
yourself; and the tenor of your remarks depends something on 
how you were brought up. 

Grimly you plow forward now ; for you are certain that the 
worst has come, and care nothing how many trees you over- 
turn in your course. Then a sapling on either side catches an 
oar, and they shut up on your aching neck like a pair of 
shears, a friendly limb lifts your hat, and drops it in the mud 
right where you was going to step, and, to save your hat, you 
make some playful passes in various ways, one foot gets on 
top of the other; then they wander off in different directions, 
and you sit down. 

It is a delightful sensation to sit aown — .n the wild woods 
— after violent exercise — and rest. Gentle zephyrs steal re- 
freshingly across your brow, and black mud insinuatingly 
through the pores of your trousers, /t such a moment as 
this, f ee from the thraldom of civilization, in the solemn still- 
ness of the mighty forests, with a soul attuned to its inspiring 
harmony, some well-remembered passage, learned in youth- 
tide, comes welling up from your joyous heart. Sometimes, 
however, Bible quotations get somewhat mixed, and a disin- 
terested beholder would be apt to misconstrue your devotional 
expressions. At such an hour as this, the most a man wants 
is undemonstrative sympathy. Such episodes, however, are 
the spice that season the dish of glorious things served up 
here among the mountains and lakes of the great wilderness. 



I20 The Adirondacks. 

A half-mile carry brought us to still water; then a short dis- 
tance of boating to Buttermilk Falls (which also lays claim to 
being Murray's "Phantom Falls") where the water dashes 
and foams down over the rocks, making a descent of about 
20 feet — and the name, though not very poetical, was prob- 
ably suggested by the churning it gets in reaching the bottom. 

"Murray talk about shooting these falls in his boat, in pur- 
suit of the phantom form, is a very probable story for a min- 
ister to tell," said the schoolmaster with a shrug. "Why, I 
drove a brood of ducks down over there once. The old one 
knew better than to go — she flew up stream; but they — a 
dozen of young ones — went over, and only three came out 
alive. He talk of doing it ! There isn't Baptist enough 
about him to do it — but there's one thing he can * shoot;' 
that's the long bow." Alas for Mr. Murray's reputation for 
veracity ! The beautiful creations of his fancy, the bright 
pictures conjured up by his fertile brain, are held as witnesses 
against him, simply because he, in his lavish generosity, has 
enriched the common occurrences of every-day life in the 
woods, wi(h the precious incense of conceptive genius, and 
left a dazzled world to separate the real from the ideal. The 
guides took him literally as he said; and, although then in the 
high tide of his popularity, had come to the conclusion that if 
his preaching was not a better guide to heaven than his book 
to the Adirondacks his congregation might have managed to 
woiry through with a cheaper man. 

We put the boat into the deep, quiet water above the falls, 
and went upward a mile and a half; then a portage of the 
same distance brought us to Forked Lake. 

Forked Lake is a lovely sheet of water, about five miles 
in length, and appropriately named. The shore is compara- 
tively straight along on the south side; but on the north it is 
an irregular lire, which, as you approach the centre, opens 
up into a far-reaching bay — itself the main branch on which 
is strung a succession of deep bays, with intervening points ex- 
tending from east to west. " The Cedars," belonging to F. C. 



Raquette Lake. 121 

Durant of New York, situated near the head of this bay, is 
one of the elegant private camps of the wilderness. 

Forked Lake House looks into this north bay from the 
south shore. This is included in the property recently ac- 
quired by the Hamilton Park Club, which takes in the north- 
ern half of township 35 and all of 36, extending beyond Lit- 
tle Tupper Lake. Transient visitors can procure meals here, 
but no permanent guests will be taken except members of the 
club and their friends. It is intended that a handsome struc- 
ture shall in time take the place of the old house. David 
Helms, of the Grove House, is manager. For the Bottle 
Pond route to Tupper Lake Region see page 209. 

Raquette Lake is at the south. Its outlet is through the 
long arm, which extends east, nearly parallel with the south 
shore of Forked Lake, into which it empties. From the 
Forked Lake House the road crosses to the steamboat land- 
ing on Raquette Lake, about a half-mile distant. It is a 
great mass of bays, separated by far-reaching points, extending 
nearly east and west. Its greatest length is but about f\ve 
miles, measured through islands and intervening headlands ; 
yet so irregular is its shape that the shore line, in its devious 
windings, is over 40 miles in extent. 

It is said that the first house built at Raquette Lake stood 
on Indian Point; the next one at Wood's Point, where an 
effort was made at farming. A twenty years' struggle, however, 
ended in its abandonment ; and, when we passed by, in 1873, 
only one lone man— old Alva Dunning, hving Robinson Cru- 
soe like on Osprey Island,— reigned monarch of the beautiful 
lake. Then the Sabbath stillness was broken only by an occa- 
sional party in camp or passing boat. There was no puffing 
steamer to carry us to our destination— only our gallant little 
pedagogue— who conducted us over the waters of the Ra- 
quette, up the tortuous windings of the Marion River, along 
through Utowana Lake, across Eagle Lake, in the gathering 
darkness ; and finally, up the uneven slope, to find weleome 
and rest in the " Eagle's Nest," once the wilderness home of 
Ned Buntline. 



CHAPTER IX. 
"The Eagle's Nest." 

Where the silvery gleam of the rushing streui 
Is so brightly seen on the rocks dark green, 
Where the white pink grows by the wild red roM 
And the blue bircf'^ings till the welkin rings. 

Where the red deer leaps and the panther creeps. 
And the eagles scream over cliff and stream. 
Where the lilies bow their heads of snow. 
And the hemlocks tall throw a shade o'er all. 

Where the rolling surf laves the emerald turf. 
Where the trout leaps high at the hovering fly. 
Where the sportive fawn crops the sofl green lawn. 
And the crows' shrill cry bodes a tempest nigh- 
There is my home — my wildwood home. 



Ned Buntline,* author of the above sweet lines that 
seem to rise upward like the joyous song of a wild bird, 
bringing thoughts of wild violets and the fragrance of 
dewy forests in it^ train— this strange man, with the 
blending natures of the tiger and the lark— came here 
in 1856, and here wrote, and hunted, and filled the mind 
of the public with wild reports of his erratic doings 
to his heart's content. He made the " Eagle's Nest " his 
home for some time, married a wife and buried her here, 
and then he tired of the old place and drifted out into 
the world again. 



*"The Life and Adventures of Ned Buntline," by Will Wildwood is now 
being published in serial form in M^i/d^vood s Magazine. "^''^^o^a, is now 



"Ned Buntline.'* 



12 



Ned had earned his spurs in Florida and Mexico, and 
when the war cloud broke over the houth, his restless, ven- 
turesome spirit called him to the field once more. Five 

wounds by sabre and bul- 
let, one of which has made 
him lame for life, testify to 
the service done for the 
country he served proudly 
and gladly, while with fine 
scorn he refused tiie prof- 
fered pension, and since, at 
intervals, as novelist, dram- 
atist, actor and temperance 
advocate has filled the pub- 
lic mind like — no one un- 
the sun but only -'Ned 
tline " the irrepressible. 
But the old eagle had 
flown, and other birds of 
prey occupied tlie nest when we came, guided by its wel- 
come light, through the October darkness to claim shelter 
for the night. It was then the only house of entertain- 
ment on the Eckford Chain, of which Eagle Lake is the 
middle link, and afforded a stopping place for sportsmen dur- 
ing summer and for lumbermen in winter. This lake is very 




^^^-^sfe. £ 



NED BUNTLINH. 



• Edward Z. C. Judson (" Ned Buntline ") was born at Stamford, N. Y., March 20^ 
1823. His adventurous career began in early childhood. He killed his first dee 
when eight years of age, ran off to sea at eleven, was promoted to midshipman when 
only thirteen, the same year fought seven duels with fellow-midshipmen who refused 
to mess with him on account of his supposed inferiority, and threatened to deplete 
the whole budding navy unless he was acknowledged as an equal ; the navy wilted. 
He served with credit in the Seminole war, in the Mexican war, and in the great Re- 
bellion. His first story, " The Captain's Pig, ' was published in his fifteenth year. As 
a writer 'of " Frontier Fiction " he was unexcelled. Buffalo Bill, Texas Jack, and 
Wild Bill were made famous by his stories of border life. His income as a story writer 
amounted to $20,000 annually. His literary productions would make more than two 
hundred large volumes. He was foremost in organizing the order of " United Ameri- 
cans" and the "Patriotic Order Sons of America." He died July 16, 1886, at hii 
mountain home, the " Eacle's Nest," in Delaware Co.. N. Y 



124 The Adirondacks. 

pretty, and about one mile long. It receives the waters of 
Blue Mountain Lake at its east end ; and this stream, which 
was then too shallow to float us in our loaded boat, is now 
the thoroughfare of the little steamers that ply these waters. 
(For matter relating to Blue Mountain and Raquette Lakes, 
see page 199.) Across Blue Mountain Lake we went, and 
rested on its west shore, 35 miles from Long Lake by the 
roundabout way which we have come, but only about five 
miles away over the mountains. 

The schoolmaster decided the question of which rouLe to 
take back by shouldering his boat and starting up over the 
mountain. The path was a gradual ascent for a distance, 
then led through a long reach of swamp and open meadow- 
land, where the springy surface of matted grass and interlaced 
roots shook and bent over unknown depths of black muck; 
then we descended into the forest-embowered waters of South 
Pond ; across South Pond to its outlet ; thence to Long Lake, 
and, by boat, to the hotel ; after which we chartered seats in 
a farmer's wagon, and went east to Newcomb to spend the 
Sabbath. 

Newcomb is 14 miles from Long Lake, 27 miles from Root's 
and 29 from North Creek. Stages run three times a week. 
At Root's, connection is made with stage to and from Port 
Henry and Schroon Lake. Newcomb is one of the oldest 
settled sections in the wilderness ; is quiet and comfortable, 
and affords good hunting and fishing. 

The Wayside Inn and The Half-way House aftord 
limited accommodations for visitors. Price of board unknown. 

Washington Chase is postmaster, job printer, and dealer in 
drugs and general merchandise, and one of the enterprising 
men of the town. There is a water route, leading from this 
point, through Rich and CatHn Lakes, to Long Lake, striking 
the latter near its outlet. 



I 



CHAPTER X. 




*' On the Tramp." 

HUS far our travels had been principally by 
carriage of some kind or by boat. We had 
passed almost around the great peaks but had 
not been among them. The mountains that 
now looked down on us from the north we had 
viewed from the other side and from the 
west. We had made a loop of over 40 miles 
in the trip to Blue Mountain Lake and back 
to Long Lake, then east to Newcomb. Now 
we must trust to our feet to carry us where 
neither boat nor horse could go, and thanks 
to the pure air, and our initiatory struggles 
over the various carries, we felt equal to the task. So, on 
Monday morning, with knapsacks strapped on our backs, we 
left Newcombs for Adirondack, the ruined village among the 
mountains, eighteen miles distant. 

Soon we saw an old friend, the Hudson River, here so nar- 
row that in places we could almost jump across it. From the 
north it came, moving sluggishly along between dark balsams 
that lined its banks. Away over beyond rested the faint blue 
crest of Tahawas, *' the cloud splitter." 

" Tahawas," so called on the maps and in the postal depart- 
ments, is generally spoken of here as the "lower works," to 
distiguish it from the upper Adirondack village ; once there 
were extensive buildings at this place ; a long dam across the 
Hudson, here called the " North River," flooding the valley 
back to the outlet of Lake Sanford, and barges floating be- 



126 The Adirondacks. 

tween the upper and lower village, carrying provisions up and 
the ore down. There was but one house standing there when 
we came. This was occupied by John Cheney the " Mighty 
Hunter " who we had hoped to see but could not as he was away 
hunting at the time. This house was burned the year follow- 
ing (1874) and the Adirondack Club House, where entertain- 
ment is now offered to the passing visitor, built afterwards. 

After dinner we followed along up the road on the west side 
of the valley. About halfway up, the foot of Lake Sanford 
is reached. This lake is four miles long with low marshy 
shores here and there, punctuated by round hills and knobby 
points. Just above the head of Lake Sanford is the " new 
forge." The huge building that inclosed is gone now, but the 
great stone furnace, forty feet square at its base, stands firm 
and solid as when made. 

The history of the place is brief and sad. In 1826 Messrs. 
Henderson, McMartin and Mclntire, who owned and operated 
iron-works at North Elba, were shown by an Indian, a piece 
of ore of remarkable purity, which he said came from a place 
where ''water run over dam, me find plenty all same." The 
services of the Indian were secured at once, at the rate of two 
shillings and what tobacco he could use per day, to conduct 
them to the place spoken of. They found, as the Indian had 
said, where the water literally poured over an iron dam. Has- 
tening to Albany, a tract of land embracing the principal ore 
beds in that vicinity, was secured, forges built, and a road cut 
from the lower works to Lake Champlain. 

The ore was rich but the expense of transportation to market 
swallowed all the profits, the enterprise proving a financial 
failure. Still it was persevered in until the death of Mr. 
Henderson, who was killed by the accidental discharge of his 
pistol. He had always had a nervous fear of firearms and at 
this time his pistol was carried by the guide in a pack which 
he laid down to perform some service required of him. 
Thinking that it lay in a damp place, Mr. Henderson picked 
the pack up and dropped it on a rock near by. With the 
motion came a sharp report from the pistol, the hammer of 




The Adirondacks. 127 

which had probably struck the rock in faUing. Mr. Hender- 
son fell to the ground, saying " I'm shot," and soon breathed 
his last. The body was borne out on the shoulders of work- 
men, and afterward a beautiful monument placed where he 
fell, bearing the inscription : " Erected by filial affection to 
the memory of our dear father, David Henderson, who acci- 
dentally lost his life on this spot by the premature discharge 
of a pistol, 3d Sept., 1845." The place has since been called 
Calamity Pond. In the death of Mr. Henderson the motive 

power was r e- 
moved, and three 
years after h i s 
death the works 
were abandoned. 
When the writer 
first visited that 
ADIRONDACK IN 1873. sectioii there was 

an old Scotchman and family in charge, who cared for the 
property and took in strangers. And well do I remember the 
night when they sent us to sleep in one of the deserted houses 
which had the reputation of being haunted. We did imagine 
that curious sounds were heard during the night ; but whether 
of some uneasy spirit or some poor dog that had been robbed 
of his nest we could not tell. We quieted our fears and 
consciences, however, with the reflection that if it were a 
ghost it would never think of looking for human beings in 
that bed ; and, if a dog, he certainly hadn't lost anything 
worth mentioning in the operation. 

To-day but little appears of the ruined village. All but 
two or three of the buildings that stood therein 1873 have 
been removed or destroyed. The ancient school-house now 
does duty as a fish-hatchery, and the old kilns are overgrown 
with vines and shrubbery. 

There was something gruesome about the place when we 
approached in our tramp of '73. 

A quarter of a century had passed since the hum of industry 




LAKE SANFORD 



The Ruined Village. 129 

sounded there. Where once was heard the crash of machinery 
and the shouts of children at play, was heard the shrill bark of 
the fox or the whir of the startled partridge. In place of the 
music of voices, was silence, solemn and ghostly. Over the 
mountains and the middle ground hung a dark funereal pall 
of cloud, across which the setting sun cast bars of ashen light, 
that fell on the nearer buildings, bringing out their unseemly 
scars in ghastly relief, and lay in strips across the grass-grown 
street which led away into the shadow. On either side stood 
cottages stained and blackened by time, with broken windows, 
doors unhinged, falling roofs and crumbling foundations. At 
the head of the street was the old furnace, one chimney still 
standing, one shattered by the thunder-bolt in ruins at its 
feet. The water-wheel — emblem of departed power — lay mo- 
tionless, save as piece by piece it fell away. Huge blocks of 
iron, piles of rusty ore, coal bursting from the crumbling kilns, 
great shafts broken and bent, rotting timbers, stones and rub- 
bish lay in one common grave, over which loving nature had 
thrown a shroud of creeping vines. 

Near the centre of the village was a large house that at one 
time accommodated a hundred boarders, now grim and silent. 
Near by at the left stood the pretty school-house. The steps, 
worn by many little feet, had rotted and fallen, the windows 
were almost paneless, the walls cracked and rent assunder 
where the foundation had dropped away, and the doors yawned 
wide, seeming to say not " welcome" but '* go." 

" O'er all there hung a shadow and a fear, 
A sense of mystery the spirit daunted, 
And said as plain as whisper in the ear. 
The place is haunted." 

As we advanced a dog appeared at the side of the large 
house and howled dismally, then, as if frightened at the sound 
of its own voice, slunk away again out of sight. We knocked 
at the door, but no sound save a hollow echo greeted us from 
within — that was also deserted. Then we went out in the 
middle of the street where, suspended in a tree, hung the bell 
that used to call the men to work, and, on the Sabbath, per- 



I30 The Adirondacks. 

haps, the villagers to worship in the little school-house near 
by. Clear and sweet, pure and fearless, its tones rang out 
over the forests, away to the mountains, then back to us, 
dying out in soft echoes. And with it went the cloud that 
had oppressed our spirits. 

We invited ourselves to enter, passed through the sounding 
hall to the rear, foraged around until we were satisfied that 
there was no danger of immediate starvation, then we built a 
fire and set about preparing our evening meal — at which point 
the rightful owners entered and went through the form of 
making us feel at home. 

This is now the headquarters of the Adirondack Club, who 
have leased and hold the surrounding territory as a game and 
fish preserve for the use of themselves and friends, and while 
their rules proclaim them a " close corporation," no one under- 
standing the circumstances can find reasonable objection. 
Stringent regulations apply equally to all members of the club. 
No member is permitted to hunt or fish outside the season as 
established by law, or hunt at all except on regularly appointed 
occasions. The small house at Tahawus and the larger 
building at the Upper Works are under competent manage- 
ment, and although primarily intended for the accommoda- 
tions of the club, provide excellent fare for the chance visitor. 
Price of accommodations is fixed by the club at $3.00 per 
day for all persons except guides and servants, and no person 
not a member of the club or their guests, will be entertained 
for more than a single night unless under pressing conditions. 
Parties who go through Avalanche Pass from the north and 
return by Indian Pass, or via versa, usually find the way too 
long for a single day, but breaking the trip at the Upper 
Works divides it evenly enough. Those who come are made 
welcome and entertained at the Club House in excellent 
shape. Myron Buttles the manager, is a walking encyclopedia 
of fact and figures, tireless in the discharge of his duty as 
manager and unremitting in his attention as host. 



Lake Colden. 131 

Calamity Pond is 5 miles toward the east and reached over 
a road which is used for lumbering in winter but which in sum- 
mer is passable only on foot. 

Lake Colden is two miles further, over a mountain trail. 
This is one of the wild lakes of the woods, and next to Avalanche 
Lake gives the wildest water view in the wilderness. On the 
west shore is a log house belonging to the Adirondack Club 
where a forester is kept to guard the interests of the Associ- 
ation and see that laws respecting the preservation of game 
and fish are properly carried out. North of this log camp a 
few rods is an open camp where parties going or coming may 
make themselves reasonably comfortable for the night. 

Avalanche Lake is nearly a mile north of Lake Colden, 
the trail passing also along its west shore. Its altitude is 2,846 
feet above tide. Its waters are cold and its walls of rock are 
perpendicular on either side. It is half a mile in length, and 
but a few rods wide. Between it and lake Colden are the 
debris from two immense slides that decended the mountain 
long before the place was known, imprisoning the waters of 
this lake. A trap dike here shows a section of Mount Colden, 
split downward for a thousand feet, its outflowing rocks nearly 
bridging the lake. This lake, and, past it, Colden, is best 
reached now by trail from Adirondack Lodge, five miles 
north. See page 86. 

Lake Henderson is about half a mile north of Adirondack. 
It is two miles long with its outlet near the center, on the 
east. From its head a trail leads to the Preston Ponds, lying 
west of Wallface Mountain — the head of Cold River, which 
flows west into Raquette River. Toward the north we look 
up a gradual slope through Indian Pass ; the dark green sides 
of Mclntyre on the east, mighty Wallface on the west. 
Up this slope we went on the morning following our night at 
the Iron Works. 



CHAPTER XI. 




Indian Pass. 

HAD expected to find a ^evcl, fertile, grove-like 
way throui^h which we could walk with little; 
exertion in the shadow of great rocks on either 
side, but how different the reality. For three 
^^T^^^rl "i''^s the rise was gradual, then we began to 
<™^ ^i7T<3fA c|i,|^5^ crossing the rivulet back and forth as we 
went upward, at times making long detours to 
the right and ascending the mountain some 
distance, then a level stretch along its sides until 
the wildly dashing torrent was reached once 
more; then onward, upward, the path growing 
wilder and more dilficult, the brooklet bounding from rock 
to rock, then lost in some dark cavern, anon trickling down 
among the huge boulders, gurgling in muffled music beneath 
our feet, then bursting out to rest a moment in some mossy 
basin, pure crystal in an emerald setting on which floated 
fairy ships of Autumn leaves, then onward in its long jour- 
ney to the sea. 

We had caught occasional giimps<ri ihro-jgh the trees of — 
was it a cloud or solid rock that rested off toward the lefl, we 
could hardly tell until we traced its outline against the sky, for 
Indian summer had hung her mantle of haze over the great cliff 
and it seemed but a shade or two deeper than the blue above. At 
last, through an opening it came out ; vast, grand, overwhelm- 
ing, immeasurable. The eye saw it hanging in mid-air, a cloud, 
an outline, a color ; tender, sw^et, luminous. The soul felt and 
bowed beneath its awful weight. The giant pines that fringed 
its brow seemed bristling hair, the great rifls and seams a 
faint tracery that scarred its sides. Motionless, it still seemed 
to be sweeping grandly away as^clouds shot upward from be- 
hind and passed over to the east, then approaching, and re- 




INDIAN PASS. 



146 The ADIRONDACKb. 

treating, as cool gray shadows and yellow sunlight raced 
swiftly across or lay in slant bars along down its misty face. 

But the highest point was not reached yet ; we were just 
entering at the lower gate, and for nearly a mile it was a con- 
tinuous climb over great chaotic masses of jagged rock, 
throwii there by some convulsion of Nature, now on a huge 
fragment that seems ready to topple over into the gulf below, 
now under a projecting shelf that would shelter a large com- 
pany, now between others from which hang dripping mosses 
and sprawling roots, stooping, crawling, clinging to projecting 
limbs, climbing slippery ledges, upward all the time. 

The trees that had found lodgment on the top of the rocks 
seemed to reach out thirstily lor something more than they 
found in their first bed ; one that we noticed had taken root 
on the top of a huge boulder, and sent down a mass of inter- 
woven r©ots twenty feet to the damp earth beneath. 

At last we near the summit and stand on Lookout Point ; 
close by rises that grand wall a thousand feet up, and extend- 
ing three hundred feet below us, reaching out north anJ 
south, majestic, solemn and oppressive in its nearness ; a lonjj 
line of great fragments have fallen, year by year, from the 
cliff above and now lie at its foot; around on every side 
huge caverns yawn and mighty rocks rear their heads where 
He who rules the earthquake cast them centuries ago. Along 
back, down the gorge we look, to where five miles away and 
1,300 feet below us is Lake Henderson, a shining drop in the 
bottom ot a great emerald bowl. 

Slowly the sun swung around toward the west, the shadow 
of the great wall crept down into the valley across the gray 
rocks, and over toward the mossy ones that had lain there 
unnumbered centuries; gradually the sweet tinkling, gurgling 
music of the infant Hudson died away and solitude reigned. 
Then as we passed onward a familiar sound came once more, 
faintly at first, then more distinctly, the singing of little 
waters ; first trickling over ocks, then dancing downward, 
increased in volume by tributary streams from the slopes of 
Mclntyre — rocked in the same mountain cradle, twin brothers 
mnd equal at their birth — the mighty Hudson rolling south- 
ward, and the impetuous Ausable dancing away toward the 



Indian Pass. 



14; 



north Down the rocky bed of the stream we went until we 
had left the pass behind, through the thick pines and hemlock 
out into hard timber land, our only guide the blazed trees, for 
the leaves covered the ground like a thick carpet, often hid- 
ing the slight trail. Over the foot hills of the mountain on 
the west, often misled by seeming paths until the absence of 
scars on the trees warned us to retrace our steps and gather 
up the missing thread. On and on, until it seamed that the 
eighteen or twenty miles we had expected to travel before 
seeing a familiar landmark had lengthened out into twice that 
number; then in the gathering twilight we emerged from the 
woods in sight of North Elba, forded the Ausable — grown to 
be quite a river since we had left it away back toward its 
head — and up to Blin's, with a sound as though a whole 
colony of bull-frogs were having a concert in each boot 

Does it pay to go through Indian Pass ? I answer a thou- 
sand times yes. It costs a little extra exertion, but the 
experiences and emotions of the day come back in a flood ot 
oappy recollections, and the soul is lifted a little higher and 
made better by a visit to that grand old mountain ruin. 




Mount Golden 



McIntirh. 
[South from Blinn's. | 



Indian Pass 



Over across the river at the west, visible from Blin's, is 
J ohn Brown's grave, which we touched from the north, then 
passed westward to the Saranacs. 

Ames*, something over a mile north and east, is described 
in the preceding pages. Here we took dinner, and, in the 
afternoon, went to Keene, thence south, through the valley ; 
but as that region is usually visited by way of Westport and 
Elizabethtown, we will glance at that route. 



CHAPTER XII. 




Pleasant Valley. 

Leaving Westport, an enjoyable stage ride of 
eight miles in a westerly course, takes us 
through a notch and out to where we can 
look down into that lovely, mountain-guarded 
retreat known as Pleasant Valley. It is 
scarcely less beautiful than its twin sister, 
Kecne Valley, over across the grand ridges 
to the west, save that the mountains do not 
crowd against it quite so closely. Like the 
other, it is a favorite resort for the artist, the 
quiet lover of nature, and for ladies, whose protectors, made 
of sterner stuff, are roughing it in the mountains and lakes 
farther west. 

Elizabethtown is picturesque, and the county seat of Es- 
sex County. It contains a population of eight or nine hund- 
red ; has five churches — Congregational, Methodist, Baptist 
Episcopal, and Roman Catholic — four or five stores, county 
offices, court-house and jail, and two excellent hotels. It is 
peculiarly an American town, having very little foreign popu- 
lation j with no mills or forges to fill the streams with sawdust, 
your clothes with soot, or your eyes with cinders. 

The Mansion House stands on the level plateau at the 
south edge of the village, 50 feet above the level of the 
•Boquet River which flows north through the valley. It is a 
large building showing prominently as we dip over into the 
valley and with recent additions and connecting cottages will 
accomodate 150 guests. A pleasant feature is its music hall. 
It has been long and favorably known and has an excellent 
and well established patronage. Rates, $2.50 per day, $10 
to $14 per week. G. W. Jenkins, Proprietor. Mr. Jenkins 
is also Manager of the Mansion House in the valley, which 
is open all the year. 



Elizabethtown. 149 

The Windsor, enlarged, Orlando Kellogg, proprietor, is 
one of the most attractive hotels in the Adirondacks. It 
consists of Tour picturesque buildings, closely connected, 
each three stories high, affording accommodations for 
about 250 guests. The buildings are fronted east and 
north witli double piazzas, and surmounted by large observ- 
atories with stained-glass windows. The convenient office 
and rece[)tion-room, music-room, cosy parlors, and commo- 
dious sleei)ing-rooms, show a thorough knowledge of the wants 
of the public. 

Repeated enlargements and improvements have made it 
very complete in its appointments and with desirable accom- 
modations for invalid and tourist. There are bowling alleys, 
tennis courts, and croquet grounds, and an excellent orches- 
tra here. Guides for the lakes and mountains, and horses 
and carriages for the beautiful drives around can be ob- 
tained on application. Telegraph office in the hotel. Rates 
2.50 to $3.00 per day. Special rates to parties making a pro- 
longed stay. 

Stages meet all trains and boats at Westport ; fare, $1.00. 
Through July and August, a fast train, connecting with night 
boats and sleepers at Albany and Troy, will reach Westport 
a little past 1 1 a. m. 

Keene Valley stages arrive here to connect with train and 
boat south, and return with passengers from afternoon boat 
north. Fare to Keene Valley, $1.50. 

Lake Placid stages leave daily, after June ist, Sundays ex- 
cepted, at 8 A. M., and, stopping at Cascade Lakes for dinner, 
arrive at Lake Placid early in the afternoon. Returning, 
leave Lake Placid at 10:00, arriving at Elizabethtown for 
supper, and connect, via Kellogg's stages, with south-bound 
sleeper at Westport. Fare, Elizabethtown to Lake Placid, $3. 
This route leads through what is undoubtedly the wildest and 
most picturesque section of the Adirondacks yet opened up 
to the public ; and, with the new four and six-horse stages of this 



Pleasant Valley. 151 

and the Westport line, tends to popularize the route among 
lovers of coaching, since so few desirable trips are left to the 
public. For those who prefer a more independent mode of 
traveling, special rigs can be secured by addressing the pro- 
prietors of the stage line, Agnew Brothers, Elizabethtown. 

Hurricane Mountain is the highest peak near by. It is 
a sharp cone, on which the sun seems to hang as it bids the 
valley good-night. A wagon road leads to its base, five miles 
distant, from which, by a sharp climb of two miles, the summit 
is reached; giving one of the finest high views to be obtained 
in the Adirondacks — second, perhaps, only to that from the 
top of Whiteface. 

Cobble Hill rises at the southwest edge of the plain like 
a hugh, rough pyramid. Beyond this, toward the south, the 
mountains approach each other, growing rough and precipitous 
as the level interval narrows down ; at places breaking off 
suddenly in perpendicular walls a hundred feet in height ; at 
others, rounding over in great, nobby, boulder-like masses, to 
the level, that flows along their base almost as evenly as though 
it were water instead of the bed of a valley. Split Rock 
Falls is eight miles south of Elizabethtown. 

EuBA Dam is, or rather ivas, the name of a little place 10 
miles south of EHzabethtown, but as its use had a tendency 
to familiarize the youth of the land with incipient profanity, it 
was changed to Euba Mills. Beyond, the road passes Dead- 
water, 16 miles; Roots, 23 miles; and Scroon Lake, 32 miles 
from Elizabethtown. 

North of Elizabethtown the road runs through close under 
the frowning ledge of Poke-o'Moonshine, past Auger Lake, 
and out across the plain to Keeseville, 22 miles distant. 

West, it winds up over the mountain pass, between Old 
Hurricane and the Giant, to Keen, 12 miles, by Cascade 
Lakes, 18 miles, oii«t across the plain of North Elba, with its 
grand panorama of mountains at the south, to Lake Placid, 
27 miles (for which see page 83). 



/V\AP OF 

•KEENE-VALLEY- 

ORlGrNAL BY 










groo' ""•" ^""^ 






m^$\^mT^^'^^ 




CHAPTER XIII. 

Keene Valley. 

EENE FLATS undoubtedly possesses the 
loveliest combination of quiet valley and 
wild mountain scenery in the Adirondacks, 
if not indeed on the continent. Through it, 
from the south, come the sparkling waters 
of the Ausable, here flowing quietly along 
beneath overhanging maples and gracefully 
swaying elms, there rippling over glistening 
white sand ; now murmuring through pleas- 
ant meadow-land, anon dancing away among 
the stones ; then dashing down rocky race- 
»rays to where, among the spray and foam of the cataract, it 
thunders and rumbles and roars as if angry with its prison 
walls ; then onward between the dark overhanging ledges 
outward through the northern portals and away to join its 
sister from the great Indian Pass above. 

A little way south of the falls the road from Elizabethtown 
comes in on the east, south of this we follow up the stream 
tSat winds quietly along through the Flats from its head six 
miles above. Soon some of the beauties that have lent such 
a charm to this locality begin to appear; we see sweet, restful 
shady, groves of water maples, great massy drooping elms, 
clumps of alders fringing the river brink, great canopies of 
native grape-vines clasping the huge rocks in loving embrace 
or festooned on the sturdy trees through which open up 
long vistas of meadow-land, a back-ground of mountain 
green, and abore all, summits of glittering granite. 

On every side they shut us in, rising right up out of the 
Flat instead of the gradual curve of a mountain from the 
plain, showing that the bottom of the lovely valley is but 
the accumulated deposit of long ages, where the floodi swept 



158 



The Adirondacks. 



down from the mountains and left their sediment in the notch 
below. Picturesque " bits " are found everywhere. The 
waterfalls are varied as the shifting forms of the kaleidoscope, 
many deserving particular attention. They are too numerous 
to mention, too wild and varied to be described. They must 




KEEXE VALLEY SOUTH FROM RROOK KNOLL LODGE. 

be seen to be appreciated. If a guide be wanted for these 
short excursions, none more competent or entertaining can be 
ound than the veteran explorer, *' Old Mountain Phelps," 
who knows wilderness ways by instinct, and talks with the 
elements as wiih familiar friends, but whose ripening years 
have caused him, regretfully, to }^ield to younger heads and 
limbs the long tramps through valley and over mountain 
heights in which he once delighted. See him at any rate, for 
a cordial welcome and pleasant hour is certain to be the 
result. 

When we reached Keene Valley, in our tramp of '73, we 
found accommodations at Crawford's for the night. In the 
morning we hunted up " Old Mountain Phelps," to show us 
the way further in. 

We found him at his home near the falls that bear his 
name ; a little old man, about five feet six in height, muffled 
up in an immense crop of long hair, and a beard that seemed 
to boil up out of his collar band ; grizzley as the granite ledges 
he loved to climb, shaggy as the rough- barked cedar, but 
with a pleasant twinkle in his eye and an elasticity to his step 
then equaled by few younger men, while he delivered his 
communications, his sage conclusions and whimsical oddities, 
in a cheery, chirrupy, squeaky sort of tone — away up on the 
mountains as it were — an octave above the ordinary voice, 
suggestive of the warblings of an ancient chickadee. 



il 



"Old Mountain Piiklps." 



15; 




"old mountain PHELPS.' 



" So you wanted old Mountain Phelps to show you the way, 
lid you?" said he, " Well, I s'pose I kin do it. I'll be along 
',s soon as the old woman'U bake me a short-cake. The wise 
aan provides for an emergency, and hunger's one of 'em." 
1 Orson Schofield Phelps is what his parents named their 
»aby, and "Old Mountain Phelps" is what every body calls 
lim now ; but his first name 
vas given years ago, some- 
ime before he had earned 
he last. He was born in 
he Green Mountain State in 
816, from which he came to 
be western part of Schroon 
/hen 14 years of age; he 
ad an enthusiastic love for 
he woods, took to them on 
very possible occasion, and 
'as a long time engaged in 
■acing out wild lot lines 
lat extended far in the interior, "" where in those times, deer 
nd speckled trout were as plenty as mosquitoes in a damp 
ay in July." 

In 1844 he was with Mr. Henderson at Adirondack, soon 
fter which he married and settled in Keene Valley. In 1849 
e made his first trip to the top of Marcy, passing out over 
[aystack around the head of Panther Gorge and to the 
immit, descending near where the main trail now runs, being 
le first man to get to the top from the east. He afterward 
at what is now known as the Bartlett Mountain trail, and 
Liided two ladies over it, a route that had been considered 
npracticable until then. He also marked trails to the top 
f Hopkins' Peak, the Giant, up John's Brook to Marcy, and 
iveral others. He has made a valuable map of the wild 
Duntry around, a section of which may be seen on page 152, 

a prized and regular contributor to a local paper, and has 
ritten a voluminous treatise on the Adirondack lakes and 
lountains, trees, birds, beasts, etc., which shows the close 
pserver and enthusiastic student of nature. 



i6o 



The Adirondacks. 




KEENE VALLEY FROM PROSPECT HILL. 

I Noon Mark ; a Dix ; 3 Dial ; 4 Nippletop ; 5 Snow ; 6 Wolfs Jaws ; 7 Rooster's 

Comb ; 8 Marcy. 

The most comprehensive and perfect '* picture " is that 
seen from Split Rock or from Prospect Hill, the latter being 
near the home of Old Mountain Phelps and easily accessible. 

The Estes House is on the east side of the river at the 
west foot of Prospect Hill. It will now accommodate 50. 
$10 to $15 per week; $2.5operday. J. H. Estes, proprietor. 
This is the only boarding house in Keen Valley from which 
Mount Marcy is visible. 

Keene Valley (village), is one mile from Prospect Hill and 
3 miles from the head of the valley. 

The Adirondack House, built in 1882, stands at the west 
outskirts of the village and is the most prominent building as 
seen from almost any direction. Open June to October. Ca- 
pacity 100. Board $2.50 per day; $10.00 to $15.00 pel 
week. S. Kelley, proprietor. 

The Tahawus House is a roomy, three story building, con- 
nected with a rambling group of less pretension, but looking 
very cosy and comfortable withal, and seeming with the various 
barns and out-houses almost a village of itself. A piazza ex- 
tends across in front of the new part and along the south, front 
and north sides of the old, making a covered promenade of 
over 300 feet. The larger building contains office, parlor and 
dining-room and desirable sleeping rooms. The table is also 
all that can be reasonably desired. A popular feature 
at the Tahawus House is its theatre, 91x36 feet, 
with stage and all accessories for amateur theatricals. I1 
has capacity for 85 guests. Open summer and winter 
A new ten-pin alley has also been built, which 



Keene Valley. i6i 

with base ball grounds and tennis court, atVord ample facilities, 
for healthful physical culture. Teams from the Tahawus 
House will meet guests at Westi)ort, when notice is sent in 
advance, and carry them direct without change to their des- 
tination. Price for board, $2.00 per day; $8.00 to $12.00 
per week. 

The proprietor of the Tahawus House, Geo. W. Kgglefield, 
is a scholarly man with radical ideas on some subjects, and 
well informed on general questions of the day — wiiich, how- 
ever, is not allowed to interfere with the comfort of the guests, 
who may feel assuredof hearty and obliging attention. 

Maple Grove Mountain House is the title given orig- 
inally to a picturesque farm-house on the road about a half- 
mile up the valley from the little village, and later transferretl 
to a more commodious building erected on higher ground 
close by. The newer building stands at the edge of one 
of the lower plateaus and commands a charming view of 
the valley in three directions. Close by in front runs the Au 
Sable; at the rear is the maple grove which gave occasion for 
the name; back of this is the steep mountain side with its 
lateral ravines and the weird Washbond flume. Accommoda- 
tions can here be found for about 40 guests. 

Conveyances of various kinds, suitable for large or small 
companies — carriages for the valley and buckboards for moun- 
tain roads — can be had at very reasonable prices. Board, 
$1.50 per day; $8 to $10 per week. House open for guests 
from June ist to October ist. Henry Washbond, proprietor. 

Flume Cottage stands at the entrance to Waslibond's 
Flume, commanding an extended view of the valley north and 
east Its owner, Martin Bahler, A.M., a graduate of Rutgers 
College, is principal of a flourishing young ladies' semmary, 
at Summit, N. J., and, as periodical landlord here, has made 
it a delightful place of rest for such as enjoy a vacation in the 
mountains. Entrance is hedged about with difficulties that 
make it charmingly unconventional as a house of cntertam- 
ment, and as a consequence rather the thin^j to be able to 



j52 The Adirondacks. 

address your letters from Flume Cottage. Transients are not 
desired. A total stranger will need some reference. If a 
Hebrew, do not apply. Capacity, 40. Board per week, $10. 
Guests will be met at Westport if desired. 

From being a private cottage, first sought by the owner for 
vacation rest, it has grown to present proportions. A former 
guest speaks of it as " an ideal summer home, where food is of 
prime quality, and the rooms are well furnished and kept in 
first-class order." Another guest mentions Flume Cottage as 
a " romantic home, where comforts unexpected in a mountain 
region are found, and the charms of music and the cheerful 
intercourse of a refined home-circle enliven the dullness of a 
stormy day." An enthusiastic admirer of the mountains, the 
Professor is noted for his tramps, and is in his element when 
climbing breezy heights or acting as guide in exploring expe- 
ditions with guests possessed of like affinities. 

St. Hubert's Inn stands on the site formerly occupied by 
the old Beede House, which was burned March 3, 1890. The 
new hotel was carefully planned for the comfort of visitors, 
striking in appearance and complete in its accommodations. 
The main building forms two faces of an octagon, a third one 
of which it is proposed in time to build on, but now enclosed 
for a tennis court. Connected with this is a pavilion affording 
a delightful assembly room removed somewhat from the hotel 
proper, yet connected by a continuation of the piaza floor, of- 
fering an odd but very attractive feature to a mountain resort. 
The Inn is three stories in height with pleasant, large-windowed 
rooms, many of them en suite, ample piazzas and balconies at 
various points along the front with doors opening from them 
into the upper rooms. There is a spacious parlor and dining 
room, a large office, a telegraph office, post-office (Beede's), 
reception, reading and smoking rooms to occupy the main 
floor. It has electric bells, steam heat, and is lighted with 
gas. There are open fire-places in the offices and main hall, 
parlors and dining-rooms. The house is furnished in modern 
style, luxuriously and artistically. The decorations are simple, 



Keene Vallkv. 163 

but in good taste. Heavy tapestry and hanging curtains in 
place af doors between the public rooms, give an air of ro/.y 
comfort quite attractive. Mountain water brought into tlic 
house is of the purest and the drainage believed to be as j)er- 
fect as possible. The price for board is from $1 5.00 to $35.00 
per week. E. H. Hayes, manager. Oi)en for guests July ist. 

St. Hubert's Cottage, formerly known as Widow Hcedc's, 
is under the same management. It stands about a half mile 
northeast of the Inn, on the face of the bluff that looks north- 
ward from the centre of Keene Valley. This house will ac- 
commodate from 30 to 40 guests and will be open June ist. 
Rates $8.00 to $15.00 per week. St. Hubert's Inn, and cot- 
tage with the property pertaining to the two houses belong to 
the Keene Heights Hotel Co., of which Edmund Dwight, Jr., 
of 51 Cedar St., N. Y., is president. 

A stage runs to Westport morning and noon, carrying the 

mail, etc. Fare, $2.50. 

The '* Inn" is on land about 277 feet higher than the valley 
I 240 feet above tide. The outlook is superb. Toward the 
eLst we see Hopkins Peak and the scarred sides and granite 
summit of the Giant of the Valley. South of us-a Imle t() 
the east of where we stand-is Noon Mark; between it and 
the Giant is Chapel Pond gorge. Southwest, is the road 
to the Ausable lakes, lying between the sharp peak of 
Colvin and the serrated summit of Resagonia. Back to 
the west is one of the lower ridges, over beyond w uch 
are the clustering peaks of the great central group. Along 
this but a few rods away, the Ausable foams and dashes 
through its rugged path; now tumbling from rock to roc k^^ 
now foaming over in lovely cascades ; anon creeping qu.etU 
now lud, 5 cr::,thered in the hollow of some 

under overhanging trees, or gatherea in , 

huge granite bowl-but always picturesque and beautiful 

Roaring BROOK Falls are east of Beede's-the head o 
.he cliff over which they fall being in sight on t e side ^> 1 
Giant, a little more than a half mile distant. ^J^^^ 
II n.ake a descent of nearly 300 feet in '^/---^Y;;;™^^^ 
* hardly touching at each step to gather for the next succeeding 



164 The Adirondacks. 

plunge ; then flashing swiftly down the almost perpendicular 
rock for the last fifty feet, through a trough worn out by its 
action, to rest at the bottom ; and out, in pretty little falls 
and dashes, across the Chapel pond trail, and downward 
toward the north to join the Ausable. 

Chapel Pond is one mile farther, in a gorge, southwest of 
the Giant — a nearly perpendicular wall of rock descending 
abruptly to near the water's edge. It is one-half mile long and 
perhaps one-fourth wide ; its dark surroundings give an im- 
pressive air to this lonely sheet, and make it seem more 
fitting as a place for solemn meditation than for angler's 
sport. It is 1,602 feet above tide. 

The Giant's Washbowl is at the northeast, on the side of 
the mountain. It is said you can stand on its edge and throw 
a stone over into Chapel Pond, more than 500 feet below. 

The Chapel Pond road leads from St. Hubert's Inn east 
along the side of the gorge, past Chapel Pond to Euba Mills. 
at the head of Pleasant Valley; thence to Mineville, 15 miles, 
or to Root's, 17 miles from the starting point. The road is 
good, considering the country traversed, and between the two 
valleys is exceedingly wild and picturesque. A day can be 
profitably spent in making this excursion. 

Russell Falls are but a few rods distant, and may be 
reached by paths through the woods west of the Inn. 

To the top of Noon Mark it is two miles; Mount Colvin, 
five miles, the Giant about four miles ; Hopkins Peak, four 
miles. A trail was completed in 1885 from the Ponds road 
to Mount Colvin. It crosses McCrea's Brook over a sub- 
stantial rustic bridge, and passes near the Wizard's Washbowl 
and the high falls of Gill Brook. The steep ledge at the sum- 
mit is now easily scaled by means of stout ladders. Starting 
from the Inn, an average pedestrian can reach the signal in 
about three hours. A trail from the Lower Lake to Indian 
Head was opened in i888, and a branch trail connecting with 
the trail to Mt. Colvin. A new trail to the top of the Gothics 
was opened in 1887. 



Keene Valley. 165 

Resagonia Mountain is in the southwest, its serrated out- 
line suggesting its local name of " Saw-teeth Mountain." East 
of this is the round, knob-like crest, known as " Indian Head ;" 
which, sphinx-Uke, looks out over the waters of the Lower Au 
Sable Lake. 

Mount Colvin rises beyond, sweeping back towards the 
south and east, to its sharp, clean-cut summit so named in 
honor of Verplanck Colvin, superintendent of tlie Adirondack 
Survey. 

The Adirondack Mountain Reserve is incorporated 
under the laws of New York, with the following officers : \Vm. 
G. Neilson, Philadelphia, president; S. Sidney Smith, New 
York, secretary; Wm. C. Alderson, treasurer. The board of 
trustees are Wm. Alexander, S. Sidney Smith, C. C. Cuyler, 
and Frederick J. Stimspn, of New York, and Wm. G. Neilson, 
Richard C. Dale, and Edward I. H. Howell, of Philadelphia. 

This corporation has purchased the tract of country lying 
south of Keene Valley, including within its limits the Au 
Sable lakes, and the great mountains surrounding them, ex- 
tending southwesterly to take in about one-half of Mount 
Marcy. The declared objects of the association are the pre- 
servation of the forests, lakes, and streams in their natural 
beauty ; to restock the water with fish ; to protect the game ; 
and to render more accessible, by roads and trails, the points 
of interest within its domain. To this end, has been built, 
practically, a new road, along the heretofore almost impassable 
line, from Beede's to the Lower Au Sable Lake, and opened 
to the public. Toll will be charged as follows : For season 
tickets, $1.50; two-horse carriage and passengers, trip $1,00; 
single rig, 50 cents; horse and rider, 25 ; pedestrian, 10; au- 
thorized guides and children under 10, free. The receipts for 
toll are to be expended in repairing and improving the road, 
and in making new trails up the mountains and to miportant 
lookouts. A stage will run regularly, during the season, from 
the village to the Lower Au Sable. Fare from Adirondack 




I 



The Adirondacks. 



166-B 



House, 75 cents, round Irij), $1.25; from Si. ilubert's Inn 
50 cents, round tri}) 75 cents. 

Some of the rules established by the A. M. R. may seem 
over-rigid ; but they have been adopted after a careful consid- 
eration of the case, and witli a view to the best interests of all 
concerned. The fact that the owners themselves are bound 
as rigidly as the veriest stranger, is reply enough to those who 
would suggest anything but the best of motives, and the move- 
ment is to be commended by all right-minded persons who 
may not consider fishing and the taking of animal life as the 
only pleasurable sensations to be experienced here among 
nature's grandest scenes, 

A rustic gate-house is at the entrance to the Reserve, just 
south of the Inn. At the Lower Lake, a boat-house and 
cottage have been built, where refreshments, boats, and gen- 
eral information, with camp supplies and privileges, can be 
obtained. 

Cutting green timber, peeling bark, or defacing the prop- 
erty of the company in any manner, is forbidden. On Sun- 
days, boats will not be rented, nor will goods be sold by the 
agents of the company. No malt or spirituous liquors will be 
1 345 




UPPER AU SABLE LAKE. 

1. Haystack; 3. Saddleback; 4. Gothic; 5. Resagonia. 

sold on the company's reserve at any time. Hunting will not 
be permitted this season. Fishing allowed only by special 
permit. All the camps on the lakes are owned and controlled 
by the company, and no one will be allowed to occupy them 
unless accompanied by an authorized guide. Permission can 



l66-c 



Keene Valley. 



be obtained at the boat-house cottage, at the Lower Lake. 
Twenty-five cents per night will be charged each visitor for the 
use of a camp. 

Following is a list of the authorized guides of Keene Valley 
— an organization bound by rules of its own making, where 
membership may be accepted by the public as a guarantee of 
capabihty. Address, at Keene Valley. Horace E. Braman, 



3/4 ^i '/4. 

ONE MILt 5CAU CH/^i. ettet 







: JU)«tK 



C AMP5 



[JP'PIR /\u5ABL[]AKt. 



Arthur C. Trumbull, Melville J. Trumbull, George W. Han- 
mer, Oren E. Beede, Charles E. Trumbull, Charles Beede, 
Edmund F. Phelps, James Owens, George F. Beede, Harry S. 
Stetson, Melvin A. Hathaway, Le Grand Hale, Frank C. Par- 
ker (Forester), C. Wesley Lamb, Fred. E. Lamb. 

******* 

We saw what was to be seen in the valley ; then, guided 
by old Mountain Phelps, with basket on back and lit- 
tle hatchet in hand, went to South Pass, where St. Hu- 
bert's Inn now stands, and up along brawling Gill Brook, 



Lower Ausable Tond. 



167 




MT. COLVIN. AUSABLB FASS. RESAGONIA. 



over a path that is sometimes dignified by the name of wagon- 
road, but over which but few would attempt to ride. 

"All things is possible and nothing ompossible," said Phelps 
diving into the bushes on one side of the road, and soon re- 
appearing with a 
piece of band iron 
which he stowed 
away in his bag, 
'* like as not I will 
need this to mend 
an oar or some> 
thing ; old Phelps 
is such an easy old 
critter to get along 
with, that they take 
his boat, bang it 
'round as much as 
they want to, may- 
be break an oar, and he never'll make a fuss about it; 
shouldn't wonder a bit if they had it off somewhere now." 

After what seemed a long four mile tramp through the 
woods, we came out in a little opening near the brow of a hill, 
and were just rising to look out when a fierce gust of wind 
from the other side set the old man's hat whirling back toward 
us ; we succeeded in spearing it, then as we turned and glanced 
out ahead, were surprised, almost dazzled by the wonder- 
ful beauty of the scene that flashed out so suddenly and un- 
expectedly on our astonished sight 

Ausable Pond in all its Swiss-like beauty was before us 
We stood at the end of our road on the brow of a hill whosr 
front had apparently been undermined, and ran sharply down 
to the water's edge, gleaming, drifti ig, unstable sand. On the 
left, close by, was old Indian Head, the side toward us all in 
shadow : rough and jagged, standing like some grim sentinel 
to guard the narrow pass at his feet — beyond was Mount 
Colvin, the sides rising in places straight up from the water, 
then backward to the sharp ridge over 2,100 feet above. 
seemingly crowned with a coronet of diamonds that flashed 
and glittered as the water trickled down over the rocks, and 




LOWER AUSABLE LAKE. 



Au Sable Lakes. 169 

mountains were passing slowly, like some great glacier, to- 
ward the plain. 

Now, among birches that have grown at the outlet since 
our first visit, stands the boat-house cottage and refreshment- 
room, and a road, circling around the bluff where I speared 
the old man's hat, leads down to the water's edge ; but grand 
old Indian Head still looks out toward the dark green sides of 
Resagonia, and rivulets glisten on the side of Mount Colvin 
the same as then. 

From the head of the Lower Au Sable, a walk of something 
over a mile along the stream that connects the two brought us 
to the shore of the Upper Au Sable, where Phelps entered the 
bushes in search of the boat which we had left there. "Just 
as I expected," said he, with a whimsical triumph in finding 
matters as he had anticipated. " 'Taint there. Old Phelps's 
boats belong to everybody but himself. Wall, we haven't got 
much farther to go to my shanty, that's one satisfaction ; and 
maybe they'll let us stay there all night, considering that it 
belongs to me." So we skirted the west shore a little way, 
and came out at the shanty, where we found the hunting 
party jubilant over the fourth deer they had taken in three 
days, and preparing supper, to which we did full justice. 

Upper Au Sable Lake is about two miles in length, and 
a half mile wide. Without being the very wildest, it is, per- 
haps, the most picturesque of all Adirondack lakes. It re- 
flects, in its waters, a number of the most striking mountain- 
peaks, which, seen from this place, are varied and extremely 
beautiful. Some are thickly wooded slopes; others naked 
rock, seamed and scarred. On the east is the Boreas Moun- 
tain, a long, heavily wooded ridge, terminating at the north in 
Mount Colvin, and extending south about 10 miles. At the 
west is Bartlett Mountain, a high ridge, near the lake. Over 
its south slope is seen the sharp cone of Haystack, which 
hides Marcy, the highest of the Adirondacks. Toward the 
north, comes Basin, Saddleback, the Gothic, and Resagonia 
— a grand circle of giants, on whose sides we can mark the 



I/O The Adirondacks. 

course of mountain torrents and the white, gUstening paiti of 
the avalanche. The shores of the lake are thickly wooded to 
the water's edge. 

This is favorite camping-ground, not only for hunters in the 
hunting season, but throughout the warm weather, among 
those who come here to enjoy its beauty and the unfettered 
life of the woods. The camps are mostly open in front to 
face the campfire, and are built and owned by the authorized 
guides of Keen Valley, by authority from the owners of the 
Reserve. 

The ascent of Marcy from Keene Valley is oftenest made 
from this direction, going by boat up the Au Sable inlet to 
Marcy Brook ; then up along the west side of Bartlett Moun- 
tain. We can hardly do better than give the trip in the 
words of tjie "Old Man of the Mountains," who stands ready 
to relieve ;us. So we will stand aside, and give him the floor. 

Ladies and gentlemen — Mr. Phelps. 

"Well, I guess I kin show you the way, fur I've been up 
there near a hundred times, I s'pose. Let's see, we're in 
Panther Gorge now, I believe, and, before we go up Marcy, I 
want to show you a sight up here, from the side of Haystack, 
that is worth seeing, where we can look right down into the 
gulf below. See that precipice on the Marcy side ? It is one 
continuous wall of rock, a mile in length, circling around to the 
head of the gorge, with Castle Column at its head. That is one 
of the wildest places in the Adirondacks, where, after a heavy 
rain or in the spring, streams pour down it from all sides. 
You see that water-course over there in the centre ? I have 
seen an almost unbroken sheet of water, six feet wide, pouring 
over that to the bottom of the gorge, almost a thousand feet 
below. Now we will pass on up the trail once more, just 
stopping to notice those shafts of rock across on the Haystack 
side. There are three of them, entirely detached from the 
wall near by, about ten feet square, and one of them near 
fifty feet high, with a loose cap-stone on top of it. The soft 



I'HE ADIRONDACKS. 17 1 

rock mubt have crumbled away between them and the mair 
ledge while they were left standing. Now, out at the upper 
end and we begin to climb Marcy, striking the John's 
Brook trail that goes down to Keene Flats near its centre. 
Up here, on the side of the mountain, we find a little marsh, 
which is the head of the longest branch of the great Hudson 
River, and the largest branch of the Ausable ; but our trees 
are getting stunted and we will soon be able to see over the 
tops of them; it's about like going through a thrashing 
machine trying to get along before they are chopped out ; but 
here we are at last at the top, and you see this is the place to 
see things*, down there at Marcy Brook, where we turned to 
go through Panther Gorge, comes the other trail up this way, 
running spirally up the south side from east to west until it 
strikes the smooth rock that has been swept clean by the 
avalance ; then up that, across back and forth to its head. It 
is about as steep as the roof of a house, and when it is wet and 
slippery it's bad getting along, but when its dry it sticks to your 
boots like sand paper. In making the round trip the trail 
goes down the north side a ways to the head of the Opales- 
cent, then west through the valley and out by Lake Colden 
and Calamity Pond to the Adirondack Iron Works. 

The summit of Tahawus is comparatively level for 6 rods 
north and south, and 15 rods east and west, a few loose boul- 
ders lie about promiscuously. At the west end ol this flat is a 
mass rising up some eight or ten feet that contains the high- 
est solid rock in the State of New York. Tahawus has some- 
thing of a ridge-like appearance, running north-east and 
south-west, although its whole formation is a comparatively 
round mound of rock. The upper thousand feet is bare, and 
clear the farthest down on the south-west side ; the west side 
of this mountain has more the appearance of a pasture hill- 
Bide than a mountain above vegetation, its partial covering ol 
Alpine grasses and other plants and shrubs give it a domestic 
and agricultural appearance. The whole south side is covered 
with bristly balsam up within a few rods of the top, and is the 
steepest and longest side, sloping away i}4 miles at the rate ol 
2,000 feet to the mile, to the foot of Panther Gorge. Large 
oortions ot the south side have been swept off by avalanchesi 



l^Jl 



The Adirondacks. 



The east is far the roughest part of the mountain. It drops 
easily off the first i,ooo feet, and then takes one final leap of 
I, GOO feet into Panther Gorge. On the north side, it drops 
down to the head of the Opalescent Valley, more or less 
broken with precipices and ravines." 

North from Marcy, over beyond a mass of mountain ridges, 
is the cleared fields of North Elba. Turning toward the 
northeast, we look down John's Brook Valley into Keen Val- 
ley. Beyond is seen Lake Champlain and the Green Moun- 
tains of Vermont. East is Haystack and the Gothics. To- 
wards the southeast is the deep valley of Marcy Brook. Be- 
yond is Boreas Mountain, and the mountains that cluster 
about Schroon Lake and Lake George. Away off in the 
southwest is distant Blue Mountain and the Raquette Lake 
region. At our feet lies little Tear of the Clouds, — the high- 
est body of water in the Adirondacks, and the fountain head 
of the great Hudson River, — ^4,293 feet above tide. North 
of west is Mount Golden, Mclntyre, and others of less note. 

" I once saw the clearing up of a thunderstorm on Marcy,'' 
continues the old man. "There was a tornado sweeping 
over the top of the mountain, and the fog-clouds, broken into 
patches, were running at lightning speed. When one of those 
clouds would strike the mountain all would be shut in with 
fog for perhaps two or three seconds, when it would open, 
giving a view of a dazzhng, brilHant orange-tint over the 
whole western sky. This could be enjoyed from two to four 
seconds, when the enveloping fog would come again — to save 
one from going crazy, I suppose. 

"A thunderstorm in the night is an awful sight from the 
summit of Tahawus. I once saw one at near midnight, ap- 
proaching from the west, when it was all below me, and I 
could look on the top of the cloud and see the streaks of light- 
ning darting in every direction. It appeared like a mountain 
of serpents writhing in every conceivable manner. When 



Camp Phelps. 173 

it finally reached me, it appeared very natural, with the 
exception the thunder seemed very near by. There are a 
great variety of fog scenes ; I saw one of three-fourths of the 
orcle about me, a level ocean of fog and the other quarter 
clear ; it made me think of a big pie with one quarter taken 
out; another one was of fog driven over Skylight in a bright 
moonlight night, it pitched over the east side like a mammoth 
water-fall, which it was, not of a river but a cloud ; anothei 
majestic sight was the gathering and passing up of what we 
call a quick south storm ; when I first saw it, it was some forty 
miles distant, coming on at the rate of a mile in two minutes ; 
a massive cloud with the driping curtain of rain reaching 
down to the earth ; as it passed up nearer it threw out some 
of the most wonderful shades and colors ; in the centre it was 
ol a clear gray ; some six to eight miles to the east and west, 
of a bright purple, growing lighter to the extremes, and to 
the east and west softening down to a sunshine hazy light ; 
it passed over to the St. Lawrence lasting near two hours." 




Camp Phelps, on the upper Ausable, is one of the most 
complete in its appointment and management of any shanty 
in the Adirondacks. The structure is of an elegant design, 
and built of magnificent logs cut and curved artistically with 
knots of various and unique patterns in has relief. The main 
floor is about 2% by 5 feet, swings outward, and is locked with a 



1 HE AdIRONDACKS. 

String; It contains an immense reception room, drawing 
room, private parior and sleeping rooms en ^uite, with ward- 
robes sticking out all around the sides. The grand dining 
hall is situate out on the lovely lawn, which is quite exten- 
sive, and splendidly furnished with hemlock extensions and 
stumps. This spacious structure is six by ten feet on 
the ground, and between four and five feet high, and is sur- 
mounted by a Yankee too{ of troughs in two layers, the upper 
covering the crevices in the lower so as to exclude the rain 
but separated far enough to give perfect ventilation. Thii 
chef (Tafuvre of TixchiitciuvQ is first class in every respect it 
IS luxuriously upholstered throughout with spruce boughs, 
in the culinary department is a stupendous range which floods 
the drawing room with light, and, in short, it contains all the 
modem improvements, including hot and cold water, which is 
carried to every part of the establishment in pails. Here we 
gathered, Crawford's party ot seven, and ours, ten in all, be- 
side two or three dogs, in a space about six by eight feet 
square, and while the fire snapped and flickered, filling the 
shanty with dancing shadows, stories of hunting and fishing 
adventures were told that all were expected to believe be- 
cause they were personal experiences, although occasionally 
one would have a familiar sort of sound with the exception 
of names and dates. Stories of personal prowess which cul- 
minated in one of a man who could pick up a two barrel iron 
kettle by the edge with his teeth, and the assertion by another 
that he knew a man who could perform the same feat sitting 
m the kettle himself when he liaed it. which was making light 
of serious subjects, and so Phelps told his bear story, how 
one day near the Boreas, he saw a big bear coming on the run 
after him and he, armed with only a little ax. then when the 
bear got within twenty feet of him he yelled "halt." which 
stopped the bear — he couldn't prevaricate, he did it with hia 
little hatchet — he didn't feel scared any. only stirred up like 
but the bear reversed ends and made off as fast as it could 
wabble. Then Uncle Harvey told all about how he killed a 
bear with a pitchfork once, and a moose with a club, after tir- 
ing him out in the deep snow. " But. by gawl, boys." said he. 
- When Dick Estus tumbled over backward on his snow shoes 



i 



Breakfas*^ 



175 



BBd the cntter gave a lunge for him, I thought it was all up 
»eith him, but I just gave command to the boys, and at him we 
went, and, by gawl, the way we laid it on his old hide was a 
caution, and there lay Dick, square on his back, looking up, 
thinkin' that every minute was his last, and, by gawl, I just 
managed to get a lick at the critter that fetched him just as he 
was standin' over Dick so," and the old hunter assumed a posi- 
tion, indicative of an enraged moose preparing to come down on 
an unfortunate little chap on his back in the snow, who couldn't 
turn over on account of his snow-shoes. Thus each had 
their stories to tell until time to turn in, when four of the 
party went across the pond to another camp, leaving six of us 
to occupy a space six feet long by six feet wide, and where we 
slept on edge, like a box of well-packed sardines, until day- 
light, when each man got up and cut a chunk of venison, salt 
pork or bacon as taste dictated, and each man for himself 
waltzed around that stove in the six by ten shanty until he 
had warmed it through enough to suit, or disguising pieces ol 
raw material in an outside coating of bread, proceeded to 
stow it away with that appearance of keen enjoyment dis- 
played by the average boy in taking a pill ; then a part rushed 
away to put out the dogs, others to the various runways. 
The old man gave his attention to some sort of a stew, 
which, as he had made no calculations on staying out all 
night, and the camp supplies had run low in the particular 
materials needed, was partially a failure ; the professor, with 
ft home-sick sort of expression on his face, was picking away 
at an ancient piece of bacon, while an enthusiastic individual 
who had wallowed in an ecstacy of imaginative bliss, theoreti- 
cally, over venison stake, broiled at the blazing camp fire, 
was engaged in preparing a savory strip of the same, which 
as he forgot to apply salt, and got hold of a piece just 
moderately warm — not cooked, at the first bite, roused a rebel- 
lious feeling within him, and he felt the full force of those 
saddest of all words, "it might have been (done,)" but it was 
not ordained to be, and at last, as his mind kept running 
on accounts of ship-wrecked people who had to eat each 
other or starve, and cannibalism seemed imminent, one of 
the ^ides came in like a dove bringing — not the olive 



t7^ The Adirondacks. 

branch exactly — but a bag of oat-meal, which he made into 
pan-cakes, and those pan-cakes went to our hearts and 
stomachs like the blissful ecstacy of love's young dream. We 
were saved ! And while we ate he baked and brought them 
forward and the more we ate the happier he seemed to feel 
about it, none of your little patty-cakes, but great big fellows 
the size of the frying pan, light as sea foam almost, and making, 
with maple sugar, a breakfast, the which when suggested, 
makes my mouth water to this day. It was but a little act of 
simple courtesy, offered, perhaps, without a thought of return; 
but it showed the willing disposition, and those pan-cakes 
touched a chord in the breast of one individual at least that 
will vibrate for all time, and if ever permitted to go there 
again he will ask for nothing better or if reports be true, a 
truer guide than Theo. White of Keene Flats, author of those 
glorious pan-cakes. 

After breakfast Phelps took us up the inlet, with its dark | 
borders of balsam and tamarack, to the Elk Lake trail, where 



] 




THE GREAT PEAKS FROM THE SOUTH. 



I Golden ; 2 Allen ; 3 Skylights ; 4 Marcy ; 5 Panther Gorge ; 6 Haystack 
7 Basin ; 8 Saddleback ; 9 Gothic. 

bidding him a regretful adieu (for we had become attached to 
the cheery Old Man of the Mountains in our short acquaint- 
ance) we started on our tramp of sixteen miles, out through 
the woods to Root's, feeling that we were nearing friends who 
would be glad to welcome us home ; clearer in thought and 
stronger in body than when we entered ; glad to go back but 
sad at thought of leaving the mountains, over which we saw 
the storm cloud gather, break and roll away, leaving them 
bathed in the loving sunshine, clean, grand, strong and seem- 
ingly eternal, as The Hand that made them. 



I 




CHAPTER XIV. 
Luzerne and Chestertown. 

UZERNE is situated at the junction of the 
Hudson and Sacandaga rivers, twenty-two 
miles north of Saratoga. It is inclosed by 
picturesque, rounded hills, heavily wooded to 
their summits, save here and there a break 
where some ledge looks out on the valley 
below. On the west are the Kayaderosseras mountains, on 
the east the Palmerton range, that has its rise at Lake 
(jeorge, and falls away into the level of Broadway at Sara- 
toga; toward the north they are broken, rocky and pictur- 
esque. These are the outreaching spurs of the Adirondack 
that rest so grandly away to the north, from which the 
Hudson comes flowing quietly along until it gathers among 
tiie great round boulders, then bounds, foaming and spark- 
ling, over the rocks in the exquisite little falls of Luzerne, 
a.nd hastens forward under the bridge and downward to its 
union with the Sacandaga at Ti-se-rafi-do, " the meeting of 
tlie waters," 

From this down the river to Jessup's Landing is six 
miles of still water, then sweeps around almost north again. 
At Palmer's Falls it is gathered in a narrow channel, then 
with a multitude of little leaps and breaks, churned and 
beaten into foam by its fall, it rests at the bottom sixty feet 
below. 

Luzerne Lake is a pearl set in emerald, lying at quite 
an elevation above the village proper ; a crystal drop on 
the hill side, kept there by a narrow embankment through 



178 The Adirondacks. 

which the outlet finds its way, and after amusing itself among 
sets of water-wheels, it passes out into the Hudson and to the 
sea. 

The Wayside Inn is just north of the village, facing the 
lake. It has connected with it a number of cottages which 
can be rented for the season, affording altogether accommoda- 
tions for about 200 guests. It is an imposing structure with 
numerous gables, porches, piazzas and balconies. The in- 
terior is in keeping — roomy, rambling, airy ; with pleasant of- 
fice, dining-room and parlor, and with a charming outlook over 
the lake and forest, and the rolling meadow land around. It 
has telegraph station in the office, and an excellent livery 
within call. Guests are transferred to and from all trains free. 
E. C. King, for some time chief clerk, is the manager. Rates, 
$3.50 to $4.00 per day; open June i8th to October ist. ■I 

Rockwell's Hotel, famous for years under the management 
of the founder, George Rockwell, and his son George H. 
Rockwell, and notable as the school from which H, J. Rock- 
well, of the Hotel Kenmore, Albany, and C. L. Rockwell, of 
the Rockwell House, Glens Falls, graduated — is now no more. 
It burned to the ground. May 18, and its re-building is a ques- 
tion not yet decided upon. 

The River View, standing just south of Rockwell's Hotel, 
will provide for about 80 guests. E. M. Garner, proprietor.^ 
Rates unknown. 

There are many beautiful drives around Luzerne. One es- 
pecially lovely, is down along the east shore of the river, that' 
is here almost always in a quiet mood where the trees that 
hang over the glassy stream appear no more perfect than the 
reflected image, to Jessup's Landing, where you may cross, inj 
the primitive style of olden times, in a scow that is held from] 
floating down with the stream by a rope stretched from shore; 
to shore. Another, to which a full day should be given, is to 
Lake George, and still another over the mountain to Glens^ 
Falls. 



\ 



ClIESTERTOWN. 



I^TQ 



Luzerne is on the old Indian trail from the great villages 
of the Mohawks to the head of Lake George. Here King 
Hendrick and his braves encamped when on their way to join 
Johnson at the lake in 1775. 

North of Luzerne the 
road runs along the river, 
at times crowded close 
against its brink as the 
valley narrows down and 
the mountains grow more 
abrupt and precipitous. 

Riverside is 28 miles 
from Luzerne, and 50 from Saratoga. Here 
the cars are left for Chestertown and 
Schroon Lake, otherwise the place is of 
little interest, save in the graceful suspen- 
sion bridge which is thrown across from 
shore to shore. 

Chestertown is a thriving little village 
of about 200 inhabitants, lying six miles 
east of Riverside. Its environment is picturesque, with lakes 
and valleys and with rolling hills that rise in places to be con- 
siderable mountains. The roads about it are interesting, and 
riding and driving the popular amusement ; but, still, only a 
short walk is needed to reach woods where partridges and the 
smaller game are found. The lakes near by afford superior 
bass fishing. 

The Chester House is on high ground in the village. It 
is three stories high, with pleasant piazzas, and is fronted by 
a nice grove of maples. It was for years popular under the 
management of M. H. Downs, when it earned the reputation 
of spreading one of the best of tables. It is now under Harry 
S. Downs, son of the former proprietor, who, with consid- 
erable experience in the business, adds a pleasant presence, 
an obliging disposition, and youthful zeal and enterprise. 
This house will care for about 150 guests. Rates, $2 per day; 
$10 to $12 per week. 




CHAPTER XVII. 




ScHROON Lake. 

CHROON LAKE is undoubtedly one of the 
most popular semi-wilderness resorts in the 
country ; it is surrounded on all sides by m cun- 
tains, not high, but wild and rugged, and 
broken into curious fragmentary masses, grow- 
ing smoother as you approach the north end. 
It is nearly ten miles in length, perhaps two wide, and 
divided in two nearly equal portions at the narrows. It 
receives the waters of Paradox and other lakes and streams 
at the north and empties through Schroon river into the 
Hudson at Thurman. The shores are low, receding in 
g;entle slopes for a distance, then rise up into the mountains 
surrounding it. Near the southern extremity is Pottersville ; 
3,t the north the village of Schroon Lake. It is reached 
usually by the Adirondack Railroad, from Saratoga to 
Riverside, then by stage to the outlet, and by steamer to 
the village at its head. Distance from Saratoga, 65 miles ; 
fire, $3.75. 

The Leavitt Stage Line, between Riverside and Schroon 
Lake, is not unworthy of special notice, the ride affording a 
pleasant change from the cars, giving variety, without con- 
tinuing long enough to become wearisome, followed by the 
halt for dinner, and the race to the steamboat in the open 
wagons. The four-horse coaches used here are of the well- 
known Concord build. The stock is first-class, and the 
drivers are of the most reliable, Eugene Leavitt, proprietor 
of the line, being considered one of tne best whips in the 



SCHROON T.AKE. 



iSl 



country. Six-horse, tally-ho stages run to tlic iiiaiu trains, 
and hghter wagons of this line connect morning and evening, 
with the "sleeper" at Riverside. 

PoTTERSViLLE HoTEL is six mlles from Riverside. it is 
the regular dining place for passengers going or coming, and 

furnishes a wholesome 
and most substantial 
dinner. John B. Wells, 
for sometime its 
manager, is now owner 
and proprietor, having 
secured this property by 
purchase. Mr. AVellsis 
a young man, full of 
energy, and brings to 
the business experience of value 
from the Wells House on Schroon 
Lake. The house is comfortably 
furnished, and affords pleasant ac- 
commodations to those who may 
prefer this to the northern ex- 
tremity of the lake. Trout Brook, 
running close by the house, affords 
very good sport, while river and lake fishing-ground is easily 
readied. At the northwest the country is extremely wild. 
Rates for board are $2 per day; $7 to $10 per week. 

The Steamboat Landing is at the outlet of Schroon Lake, 
something less than a mile from Pottersville. Here the 
*'Efifingham," Captain Sam Russell, waits the coming stage. 
The sail through Schroon Lake is delightful, and not so long 
continued as to become tedious. Fare 75 cents. 

Adirondack is a hamlet on the east, four miles from the 
outlet. 




1 82 The Adirondacks. 

As the little steamer swings slowly around and starts away 
on her nine mile trip through the lake we see that the moun- 
tains are all around, and although other lake gems may have 
a grander setting, there are few with greater variety and none 
with lovelier shores. On the southwest are the great rough 
mountain ribs and knobs that gather around Pottersville ; to- 
ward the north they soften down for some distance ; then be- 
yond we see the sharp outlines of the Blue Ridge, and catch 
glimpses of Mount Dix, the Dial and the numberless, name- 
less peaks that cluster around Tahawus — the cloud splitter — 
seen at one point, faint and blue with distance. 

Adirondack is on the east side, on the stream of the same 
name. It is four miles from the other, quite a stirring Httle 
place, fragrant with the odorous smell of tanbark and popu- 
lar with a good class of summer visitors. 

Watch Rock Hotel is just beyond the northern border 
of the little village in a luxuriant grove that extends towards 
the north along the lake and backward to the mountains. Its 
environments bespeak a thrift and enterprise that has placed 
it on a par with the leading hotels of the Adirondacks. It has 
connected with it several cottages, some of them occupied by 
their owners, while others form a part — and a very delightful 
part — of the hotel accommodations. One notable feature is 
a series of springs of fresh mountain water, famous for purity, 
coldness and healthful properties, taking rank as such among 
the uncommon ones of the mountains. Accommodations are 
here afforded for about 124 -guests. Rates $3.00 per day ; 
$14.00 to $18.00 per week. Open from June 15th to Octo- 
ber. George Cecil, proprietor. 

Steamers connecting at the foot of the lake with stages for 
the railroad, land at every trip. Fare, 50 cents. 

The Taylor House and Cottages are located on Lake 
View Point, nearly opposite Adirondack. In addition to the 
main building used as a general dining, room, parlor and of- 
fices, there are fifteen or more cottages of various forms and 



The Adirondacks. 183 

sizes scattered among the trees and presenting altogether a 
very attractive picture. Capacity of all about 175. The 
house and grounds are lighted h^ electricity. The accommo- 
dations and fare are excellent. Rates from $14.00 to $21.00 
per week ; $2.50 to $3.00 per day. C. F. Taylor & Son, pro- 
prietors. P. O., Taylor' s-on-Schroon, Warren Co., N. Y. 
The steamboat lands on all trips to and from the outlet. Fare, 
50 cents. 




34 5 

schkodn lake village fkom south. 
1 Dock; 2 Ondawa House ; 3 Lake House ; 4 Windsor; 5 Leiand House. 

ScHROON Lake in general, we have spoken of. Schroon 
Lake in particular means the collection of little houses and 
big hotels at its head. Like the inhabitants of Caldwell, 
who embezzled the entire name of Lake George, for postal 
purposes, the little village here has swooped down and 
gobbled up " Schroon Lake," without regard to the rights or 
feelings of those who may locate at different points along its 
shores, and who, when they have occasion to say they live at 
Schroon Lake, find it necessary to explain that they mean 
only near the water thereof. 

The little village is, however, worthy of the best name on 
record, if beauty of location and general appearance entitles 
one to such. The main street through which the road runs 
to the north is a fine shaded avenue, the land sloping down 
to the edge of the lake, displaying the whole in a very 
pretty manner. It is a thoroughly wide awake town, show- 
ing a degree of enterprise that many larger places might 
well be proud of; daily mails are maintained throughout the 
year; the telegraph brings it in direct communication with 
the great cities. The churches are good — although Schroon 



ScHROON Lake. 

Lake doesn't rely much on its churches. The hotel accom- 
modations are first-class, while the enterprise of their propri- 
etors, together with the fine •natural attractions of the place, 
has earned for this a world-wide reputation, standing secc nd 
only to Lake George — ahead of it, even, with those who de- 
light to point the rifle or cast the fly. The society here is of 
a refined class, scarcely any of the rowdy element finding its 
way in, for the bright skies, the waving fields, the far-reaching 
forests, and the grand freedom of the mountains, possess little 
that is congenial to the tastes of such. 

The Grove Point House is about a half-mile south of 
the village, and the steamboat lands here on its regular trips. 
The house is attractive of itself, and is picturesque in its sur. 
roundings. It prospers because its manager is thorough, en- 
ergetic, and withal, obliging. It contains many of the con- 
veniences and appliances of the modern hotel, including elec- 
tric bells. Accommodations are here ofl"ered for about 75 
guests. Rates, $2 per day; $8 to $12 per week. An illus- 
trated circular, giving particulars, will be sent on application. 
Captain W. A. Mackenzie. 

As we approach the village, the most prominent objects are 
the hotels — the Leland House, on the high ground at the 
right; the Schroon Lake House, near the water's edge; over 
this, the Windsor House, and the Ondawa, among the trees 
at the left of the Lake House. 

The Leland House is the leading hotel of Schroon Lake. 
From its commanding position it overlooks the lake in three 
directions — south, east, and north, and, on the west, the 
village and the hills beyond. On its south front is a broad, 
high piazza, double at the ends; and, in front of this, a grand 
-^ort-coachare — a pleasant and duly appreciated feature of a 
sunny day. An observatory on the top of the building is 107 
feet above the lake, and gives a view of rare beauty and con- 
sidvirable extent, showing the full reach of the lake at the 
south, and a charming picture of Schroon Valley toward the 



1 86 The Adirondacks. 

proportions. Its rooms are large and well furnished. New 
mattresses have been added during the past year and the usual 
refurnishing done throughout. A pleasant feature of the 
house — hibernically speaking — is its open platform outside over- 
hanging the lake shore, and itself overshadowed by wide- 
spread trees, affording one of the most delightful imaginable 
resting places of a sultry afternoon or evening. Underneath 
this platform, in the bank, is a cold spring from which the wa- 
ter is forced up into the house. The hotel, as conducted by 
Mr. Riddell last year, has been spoken of in the highest terms 
by old guests. A generous policy marks the new manage- 
ment and can not fail to attract visitors and bring success. 

The Ondawa is just west of the Lake House, among the 
trees that nearly hide it from sight when viewed from the lake. 
It will provide for about loo people. Board costs from $2.00 
to $2.50 per day; $10.00 to $14.00 per week. Open June 
I St. Maurice O'Connor, proprietor. This is one of the old- 
est houses of the section. It has always maintained a high 
reputation for wholesome fare and comfortable accommoda- 
tions, and has been for years a resort of note for sportsmen 
visiting Schroon Lake. On the side towards the water are 
comfortable piazzas looking out on a small park belonging to 
the house, shaded heavily with stately maples and elms and 
shut out from the outer world by a magnificent hedge along its 
entire front. The proprietor is obliging and indicates a dis- 
position to do everything possible to sustain the good standing 
of the house. Those who have been his guests in the past 
will need no recommendation to come again. 

The Windsor Hotel is west of the Leland House. C. L. 
Hunter, proprietor. It has capacity for about 60 guests. 
Rates, $2.00 per day; $10.00 to $12.00 per week. Open 
June to October loth. There has been an entire change 
in the management here with a general refitting and added im- 
provements. E. E. Hunter, formerly of this house and later 
of Hotel Emmett, is manager. C. W. Bur well, late of the 
Ondawa, clerk. 



I 



I 



ScHROON Valley. 187 

The Leland Cottage, on Main street, has accommoda- 
tions for about 25. Rates, from $6.00 to $9.00 per week. J. 
M. Leland, proprietor. The Prospect House, also on the 
main street of the village, will provide for about 30 guests at 
$9 to $12 per week. J. A. Pitkin & Brother, proprietors. 
Stages run mornings from Schroon Lake to Hammondville, 
1 1 miles distant. Fare, $1.50. Connec. 
tion is made over the Crown Point Iron 
Co.'s railroad, with afternoon train on the 
Delaware and Hudson Railroad. 
Paradox Lake is four miles north o^ 




CROWH 



Schroon. It is four miles long, measured east and west. At 
its west end the shores are low and smooth ; at the east, abrupt 
and rugged. 

Paradox House, on the south side of the Lake, two miles 
from its outlet, is noted for trout dinners. 

Root's Hotel is nine miles north of Schroon Lake, 27 
east of Newcomb, 23 south of Elizabethtown, and 17 west of 
Port Henry. A stage will run between Root's and Port 
Henry daily from June 2d to September 8th. This house has 
a new proprietor in the person of A. Carson, who promises to 
revive the ancient glory of Root's with the added conveniences 
of more modern days. Hunting and fishing are to be made 
the great attractions, and facilities for sport are not wanting. 
Repairs have been made on the house with a general renova- 
tion and refurnishing. Accomodations are offered for 75 
guests. There is no more delightful or picturesque point in 
the noted valley of the Schroon than right here where stands 
the famous old "Root Inn." 

Toward the west, between the mountain whose jagged sides 
come down to the edge of the valley, runs the road to the 
Boreas region, Newcome, and Long Lake. 

Elk Lake is reached by leaving this road five miles east of 
Root's, and proceeding northward thence, by a good road, 
five miles further. From this point the trail leads over Boreas 
Mountain to the head of Upper Au Sable Lake, about six 
miles distant, for which see page 168. 




VIBWS ON THE ADIRONDACK RAILWAY. 



North Creek. 189 

North from Root's stretches the beautiful valley of the 
Schroon, until the gradually approaching mountains on either 
side come together at Deadwater, where the waters of the 
Schroon River, here a mere brook, are gathered and begin 
their winding way southward. 

At Euba Mills, 13 miles north of Root's, roads diverge— 
the one bearing toward the riglit leading down through Pleas- 
ant Valley, to Elizabethtown, 10 miles; the other toward the 
left, upward through Chapel Pond Gorge to Keen Valley, 
about six miles distant. For these points, see pages 148 and 
152 respectively. 



North Creek is the terminus of the Adirondack Railroad, 
and the point of departure for Newcomb, the Adirondack 
Iron Works, via Minerva, and for Blue Mountain and 
Raquette Lakes. 

Through the summer trains run twice daily each way, and 
a night train, with through sleeping car attached, leaves Grand 
Central Depot, New York, at 7.30 p. m., arriving at North 
Creek early in the morning. 

The American, a short distance from the depot, is the best 
hotel at North Creek, and provides good, substantial fare at 
the very reasonable rate of $6 to $10 per week; transient 
guests, $2 per day. John Mclnerny, proprietor. Mr. Mcln- 
erny will also furnish horses and light or heavy carriages, for 
interior places, at reasonable prices. Parties for Aiden Lair, 
Newcomb Lakes, or the section around the Adirondack Iron 
Works, not reached by daily stage, will find it advisable to 
make arrangements for conveyances at this point. 

Minerva is eight and a half miles distant. Stage runs on 
arrival of noon train. Stage leaves Minerva for Long Lake 
Wednesday and Saturday, via Aiden Lair, eight miles — a 
"gamey" country, and a very good fishing locaHty — and New- 
comb, 14 miles farther, for which see page 124. 

Stages leave for Blue Mountain Lake on arrival of trains at 
North Creek, morning and noon. The morning stage con- 



iQO The Adirondacks. 

nects at Blue Mountain Lake with steamer for Raquette Lake, 

all landings — and with stage for Long Lake. Stage leaving 

on arrival of noon train reaches Blue Mountain Lake for sup- 
per. Stages, fare, North Creek to Blue Mountain Lake, $3. 
Patent canopy-top buckboards, may be had by paying an ad- 
ditional sum, for which apply to the stage agent at either end 
of the route, personally or by mail or telegraph. 

The North River Hotel is five miles from North Creek. 
W. IT. Roblee, proprietor. This is the regular dining place 
for all passengers over this road in going in or coming out of the 
woods, and provides a meal seldom equalled in its wholesome- 
ness and hunger-satisfying nature. Stages run as far as this 
point, on arrival of the evening train from the south, bringing 
such as may desire to remain over and be fortified with a 
night's rest and one or more of mine host Roblee's excellent 
meals for the longer ride of the morrow, and it is recom- 
mended that those not over robust break the journey here, 
taking buckboards for the interior in the morning. A day or 
more can be spent here to advantage, either for rest or sport. 
The surrounding country affords excellent fishing and the 
smaller game, and is within easy walking distance of pomts 
where the larger kinds may be found. The house will provide 
for 40 guests. Rates, $2.50 per day; $10 to $15 per week; 
meals, 75 cents. Connection with the Western Union Tele- 
graph is made at this point. 

Thirteenth Lake is four miles west, and is reached over 
a very good road. It is about three miles in length by half mile 
wide, and 1,952 feet above tide. It affords excellent fishing, 
and the wild country around it is noted hunting ground. 

A short distance above North River we climb up through a 
high notch at the west, rising a thousand feet in something 
less than four miles, then descending gradually, cross a stretch 
of burnt land to Indian River. 

The Indian River Hotel, with capacity for 40, is at the 
crossing, 11 miles from North River. Frank Moody, pro- 
prietor. 



Indian Lake. 191 

The Seven Chain Lakes are at the north, about seven 
miles distant, and reached over an indifferent road. Bonney's 
little hotel is on the third lake, which is the largest of the 
group, being about two miles in length. From the fifth lake 
a land-and-water route leads north to Newcomb, something 
over ten miles distance. 

Indian Lake (P. O.) is one mile west of Indian River. A 
few houses at intervals along the road, and a very comfortable 
looking hotel called the Ordway house, with stores, and a 
post-office, constitute the village. 

Indian Lake (that is the lake proper), is about two miles 
south of the village. The original lake was about three miles 
long, but its overflow sets back in times of high-water, increas- 
ing its length to something more than twelve miles. 

Lewey Lake is twelve miles south of Indian Lake Village. 
The overflow of Indian Lake at times reaches back to the falls 
at outlet of Lewey Lake. In low water the river between the 
two is navigable, with the exception of a short carry around 
the falls above mentioned, A little hotel at the head of 
Lewey Lake is kept by J. McCormick. Will accommodate 
about 40. P. O., Indian Lake. 

Cedar Lakes are reached by a rough eight-mile trail from 
this point west, or by road from Lake Pleasant, or via Cedar 
River route, from the Blue Mountain Lake road. 

The West Canada Lakes, belonging to another system, 
and discharging into the Mohawk, may be reached from the 
Cedar Lakes by short carries. 

•t^ ^l^ 5|c ^(t -Jit v V 

Lake Pleasant can be visited best via the Fonda, Johns- 
town and Gloversville railroad to Northville, thence by stage 
to Sageville. Sacandaga Park, at the terminus of the railroad, 
one-fourth mile from Northville, has a commodious and well 
kept hotel, and a number of handsome summer cottages be- 
longing to private parties. 

Sageville, the county seat of Hamilton County, is a scat- 
tered village or 40 or 50 families, centered at the southwestern 



192 The Adirondacks. 

extremity of Lake Pleasant, and between it and Round Lake. 

The Lake Pleasant Inn, formerly kept by George A. 
McCoy, is now under the proprietorship of J. D. Morley. 
The amount of energy infused into the business under the 
new management bids fair to make it one of the noted resorts 
of the wilderness. Improvements have been made, and new 
furniture added. Accomodations are now offered for 50 
guests. Board $2.00 per day; $9.00 to $12.00 per week 
with special rates for early and late visitors. Open all the 
year. Telegraph and Post Office in the house. Northville 
stage runs daily connecting with trains. Fare $2.00. Ar- 
rangements may be made for special conveyance by address- 
ing the manager of the house. Guides and necessaries for 
hunting and fishing can be secured here, and livery rigs for 
land excursions. Fred. H. Smith, manager, P. O. address, 
Sageville, N. Y. 

" Kun-Ja-Muck," formerly Call's Hotel, under the manage- 
ment of Mrs. Anna A. McMartin will provide for 50 guests. 

Lake Pleasant is about four miles long. At the norths 
western extremity of the lake is the Sturgess House. 

PiSECo Lake is about six miles southwest of Sageville, and 
"•fiords good fishing. 

Cedar River is 20 miles from North Creek. From this 
point in to Blue Mountain Lake, 10 miles, the road is through 
almost continuous forest save the occasional opening made by 
some stalwart settler, and the to-be-expected "Half-way" 
house where the horses are watered and allowed to get their 
breath while the expectant landlord stands invitingly ready to 
serve the passengers with stronger liquid. Note in passing 
the devastation caused by the cyclone of '88. 

Blue Mountain Lake is fairly in the Great North Woods. 
It is the opening of communication by boat with the magnifi- 
cent system of lakes and streams which cover so large a por- 
tion of the Adirondack wilderness. It rests 1,800 feet above 
tide, is an irregular oval in shape, extends nearly three miles 



Blue Mountain Lake. 193 

its longest way, and empties at the west, through Eagle and 
Utowana lakes into Raquette Lake. 

Blue Mountain Lake House is on the east shore of the 
deep bay which first appears as we approach from North 
Creek. The first hotel at Blue Mountain Lake was built here 
in 1874, by Dr. G. R. Martine, of Glen Falls, N. Y., to whose 
energy and far-sightedness much credit is due for the initiatory 
in opening up this now popular gateway into the Adirondacks, 
and for whose unswerving belief in the valuable curative 
properties of this high mountain region, many have reason to 
feel grateful. The old house was burnt to the ground in 
1886 ; but, with the same energy which has characterized the 
management in all its undertakings, arrangements were imme- 
diately made for its rebuilding on the old site. This new 
house is spacious and attractive. The main part is four 
stories high and 150 feet long, with fine, broad piazza, facing 
the lake, and a rear extension, almost as large as the main 
building; giving, with the cottages, accommodations for over 
300 guests. It stands on an elevation, overlooking a grove of 
native trees, through which paths lead down to the sandy 
beach, from which the steamboat starts on its daily trips down 
the lake. Ten outlying cottages, among the trees, afford very 
desirable quarters for those who may prefer apartments re- 
moved from the stir and bustle of a great hotel. Telegraph 
office connecting with the Western Union system, and stage 
and steamboat ticket offices, are in the hotel. Stateroom and 
sleeping car berths can be secured here. Board, $3 per day, 
with special rates for the week or season, according to rooms 
and accommodations. John G. Holland, proprietor. 

Mr. Holland is the pioneer hotel man of this section. He 
is genial, accommodating, and popular, winning the esteem of 
his guests ; so that those who have once enjoyed his hospi- 
tality are generally his warm advocates thereafter. With him 
the old house had a patronage greater, perhaps, according to 
its capacity, than any other one in the wilderness, and under 
him the new one must likewise prosper. 



Blue Mountain Lake. 195 

The Blue Mountain House is about a mile nortK of the 
Lake House. It stands on the side of Blue Mountain, 200 
feet above the lake, to which the surface of the ground drops 
sharply. The view is one of the loveliest imaginable, reveal- 
ing the lake in its entirety, the island studded plain at our 
feet, the receding clusters of islands, the sinuous shores lead- 
ing away to the outlet, and over beyond it the lengthened 
reach of Eagle Lake, with a glimpse of Utowana and the 
verdant slopes that compass about the shores of the 
queenly Raquette. A path leads down through the thick 
forest to where a fleet of dainty Adirondack boats lie snugly in 
boat house or at rest on the sandy beach. Accommodations 
are provided for about 80 guests in the main building and ad- 
joining cottages. The fare is wholesome and abundant, 
cleanly and appetizing, the service kindly and willing from 
the proprietor down. Its altitude makes it a desirable 
place for those who suffer from hay-fever. A free carriage, 
conveys guests to and from the Blue Mountain Lake House, 
to connect with the stage, and stages pass the house daily for 
Long Lake, eight miles distant. (For Long Lake see page 
113.) Altogether, the Mountain House possesses more than 
the average number of favorable counts among Adirondack 
hotels. Rates here are $2 to $2.50 per day; $10 to $15 per 
week. Open from June ist to October 15th. Telegraph of- 
fice in the house. D. H. Hall, proprietor. 

Mr. Hall, coming to this section for the benefit of his 
health, records his opinion in the most practical way by set- 
tUng permanently. He brought experience of value to the 
house and now succeeds Merwin & Hall as sole proprietor. 

Fair View House is in the gathering village of Blue 
Mountain Lake, on the road that leads from the Lake House, 
around the shore, to the Prospect House. It has mostly a 
local patronage and is moderate in price. 

The Prospect House, built in 1881, vs one of the largest 
of the Adirondack houses, and is, considering the difficulty at- 
tending the work at the time of its erection, a marvel among 
hotels. 



19^ The Adirondacks. 

The Prospect House will accommodate 500 guests. Price 
of board, $4 to $5 per day ; $21 and upward per week; ser- 
vants half price. During the winter, guests are entertained 
in a larger cottage under the same management. George W. 
Tunnicliff, manager. 

A small boat of the Blue Mountain and Raquette Lake 
Steamboat line, the " Toowahloondah," of light draft, that 
it may pass easily through the shallow streams connecting 
the lakes, leaves the hotel docks morning and afternoon, 
and passing through this and Eagle and Utowana lakes and 
streams, connects at Marion River Gary with steamer for Ra- 
quette lake landings. The mere fact of going on the little 
steamer, with the vast and reverberatory name, is not all there 
is in this trip, although of itself a pleasure. The excursion is 
one of the most delightful ones of the wilderness, a source of 
continued surprise and enjoyment, introducing as it were, the 
traveler to the wild woods and lakes in the mildest manner 
possible, and giving him just a suggestion of the difficulties of 
portage between waters that he will find later on. The line 
belongs to W. W. Durant, ex-President of the Adirondack 
Railroad and owner of a number of townships around the 
lakes. It is thoroughly equipped and adapted to the particu- 
lar needs of the traffic, and while working on systematized 
lines with clock-like regularity, is not obtrusively formal and 
fits in admirably with its surrounding conditions. Extra boats 
are subject to charter and afford interesting means of explor- 
ing the nooks and by-ways of lakes and tributary streams. J. 
G. Thompson, Superintendent. 

As we pass out into the open lake Blue Mountain rises in 
graceful outline behind us. On its western slope, high above 
the water, are the Mountain House and cottages ; nearer is 
Thatcher's Island, the property of Ex-Mayor Thatcher, of Al- 
bany, with the cottage at its east end. On the point project- 
ing from the south shore, near the outlet, is the attractive 
summer place of Colonel Duryea, of New York. 



1 




Eagle Lake. 19; 

Passing through the outlet with slackened speed, responding, 
perhaps, to the request of the Commodore to come out for- 
ward to get her stern up away from the bottom, and by aid of 
steam and pikepole we round the short bend, pass under the 
bridge, and out into the waters of Eagle Lake. 

Eagle Lake is about one mile long, with low wooded 
shores, except a clearing on the north side. The old log house 
standing near the shore is the " Eagle's Nest," where Ned 
Buntline came years ago, and under the tree, near the house, 
lies the bride he brought and buried there. 

A somewhat longer stream than the one we have just 
passed out of, leads through drowned lands, from Eagle into 
Utowana Lake. This lake is about two miles long, narrow 
and straight, running away toward the west. Passing into its 
outlet we soon reach the landing, where we find the rustic 
waiting-room and the dam, which has raised the water, 
making navigable the streams between the lakes. From this 
landing a road leads to the head of navigation, on the Marion 
River, one mile distant. You have noticed, perhap*, that the 
steamer whistled some ways back, and as we approach, a one- 
horse wagon, with a rigging something like a hay-rack, makes 
its appearance. Into this the baggage is tumbled, the boats 
tied on (if any are there to be carried), and the weaker mem- 
bers of the party, or those who may prefer to ride, take their 
places. But few do care to ride, for this carry is simply an 
excellent road through the woods, resembling in no respect 
the slippery carries of the back country. At its west end, we 
find another steamer, somewhat larger than the one we have 
just left but belonging to the some family, as you will con- 
clude from its jaw-breaking Indian name, which is considered 
the proper thing up here. 

The Marion River, from this point to Raquette Lake, is 
one of the crookedest rivers in the whole world, and, for some 
distance, taxes to its utmost the abiHty of our pilot and the 
circling power of the little steamer. It flows sluggishly along 
its reedy shores, wandering back and forth between the low 
hills, in a succession of loops, that makes the way traversed, 



iqS The Adirondacks. 

which is about two miles in a straight line, double that dis- 
tance before open water is reached. This is the largest feeder 
of the Raquette, and enters it through a gradually widening 
estuary, beyond which is seen the islands and the broad lake. 
How different now from the days when the Professor and I 
passed through in 1873 ! Then it boasted of but one resi- 
dent, and he a squatter. (There are squatters there now, but 
they come in state and are a credit to the section.) Now it 
is teeming with Hfe. A fibre from the throbbing mass of 
travel has pierced these depths ; the shrill whistle of the com- 
ing steamer calls forth a joyous crowd for their daily budget of 
news from the outer world, and comfortable hotels have sprung 
into sudden and thrifty existence to meet the requirements of 
the season. 

Raquette Lake Post Office is on Long Point, at the 
left as we emerge from Marion River and pass out in the 
gradual broadening lake. Mail addressed to Raquette Lake 
is delivered here, unless, as is customary, each separate hotel, 
camp and cottage has furnished its individual mail-bag which 
the accommodating steamboat captain gathers and delivers 
daily. The telegraph office is also in this building with the 
post office. 

"The Hemlocks," formerly known as Raquette Lake 
Hotel, is just a little beyond the post office. This house has 
been thoroughly renovated and refurnished this year. It will 
provide for about 60 guests. In addition to the main build- 
ing, are the cottages on either side, the one formerly occupied 
by Madam Gerster at the east, and the Cotterell cottage on 
the west. An unsuspected clearing back in the woods, now 
under a high state of cultivation, will supply fresh vegetables 
during the season. Open July i to October. Price of board, 
$3 per day, $17.50 to $25 per week. 

" The Antlers " is on Constable Point, in plain sight, al- 
most due west as the steamer leaves the mouth of the Marion 
River. The location is a delightful one, and commands an 
extensive view of the lake north and south, as well as into this 



Raquette Lake. 199 

deep bay, from which the approach is made. It is a hotel on 
the colonization plan — a collection of camp-cottages, which 
may be rented at room rates, and a larger, central build- 
ing, containing the general office, dining-room, and public 
rooms, the idea being a collection of camps in which guests 
shall have all the privacy of their own homes, relieved from 
the annoying but quite necessary details of the preparation of 
their daily food. This plan of separate buildings of one or 
two rooms each has proved a success here. It gives the tem- 
porary proprietor of each a sense of independence and own- 
ership that is very pleasant, resulting in each structure taking 
upon itself a degree of individuality and character according 
to the taste and disposition of its occupants, interesting to ob- 
serve. Provisions are also made to entertain transient guests 
here on the same general plan. Accommodations are offered 
for about 75. Rates, $3.00 per day, $17.50 to $25 per week. 
Special rates for the season. Boats, guides, camp supplies 
and fishing necessaries can be had here. The steamboat 
stops here about an hour and a half to allow time for 
dinner. 

The open camp, a pleasant feature of the Adirondacks, is 
shown here to great advantage. The logs piled high and 
blazing at night, flood the interior with pleasant warmth, thaw- 
ing the most crusty into genial friendHness ; here gather the 
minister, the author, the playwright, the musician, and even 
the haughty broker, to melt and become better acquainted in 
an evening than by a four weeks' intercourse in a hotel parlor. 

The Hemlocks and Antlers are both under the management 
of C. H. Bennett, builder and proprietor of the Antlers. Mr. 
Bennett is genial, attentive and obliging and has made many 
friends. His executive ability is considerable and his success 
as a hotel keeper beyond question. The two places, con- 
trasting very strongly as they do, offer a choice of extremes 
pleasant to contemplate, the Hemlocks full of shadows sug- 
gestive of comfort in the warmest of weather, the Antlers 
flooded with light and sunshine, offering healthful warmth to 
the delicate on whom the winds may not blow too rudely. As 



200 The Adirondacks. 

the Antlers has become noted for the excellence of its 
table we may expect the same generous completeness in all 
details at the Hemlocks as well, and the best of entertainment 
to all who may become guests of either place. 

Brightside-on-Raquette is on the south side of Indian 
Point, under " The Crags." The main building is finished 
in native woods with a degree of elegance that bespeaks the 
artistic feeling of the builder who is also the proprietor, and is 
nicely furnished throughout. It stands among the trees afford- 
ing a delightfully retired stopping place for those who would 
withdraw from the more public places of entertainment on the 
lake. Altogether the accommodations offered are sufficient for 
forty guests. Rates $2.00 to $2. 50 per day; $12.00 to $18.00 
per week. Although new to the hotel business the complete- 
ness with which every part of the house has been furnished 
together with the well-known character for thoroughness 
possessed by Mr. Bryere, indicates that whoever finds a harbor 
here will have no cause for complaint either as to service, 
table or accomodations generally. Mr. Bryere is noted for 
artistic skill in the manufacture of rustic furniture, and his 
services in this particular line are at a premium in the woods. 

" Hathorn's Golden Beach," at the eastern extremity of 
South Bay, two miles from the landing at the postoffice, con- 
sist of a log house, containing dining-room, kitchen, etc., log 
cottages of rustic finish, and several detached, bark-covered, 
box-like sleeping-rooms, set up among the pines, along the 
line of beach, and open camps. Capacity — grand total — 30 
guests. Board, $2.00 per day, $9.00 to $12.00 per week. 
Open June ist to November. Chancey Hathorn, proprietor. 
Parties for Hathorn's leave the steamer at the post-office dock 
and take row-boat to this point. 

Rush Point Camp, near South Inlet, kept by honest, big- 
hearted Jo. Whitney, accommodates 10. Uncle Jo's flowers 
are alone worth going there to see. 

Blanchard's Wigwams, on Green Point, west of Camp 
Stott, C. W. Blanchard, proprietor, offer entertainment for 25 
guests. 



Raquette Lake. 201 

Unique and pretty features of this lake are the two churches, 
one of the Roman Catholic faith, standing among the trees 
near the Post Office, and the other (Episcopalian) on a small 
island south of Osprey Island, where services are conducted 
regularly throughout the summer, the congregation coming by 
steamers and row-boats. The officiating clergyman of the last 
named church occupies the rectory on the island during the 
season. 

The rustic camps of Raquette Lake are elegant affairs, and 
although built of rustic material found ready to the hand, it is 
apparent that twisted cedar, shaggy spruce and silvery birch, 
in their native vestments, were not chosen because they cost 
nothing there. Some of these camps are works of art, and 
filled with dainty bric-a-brac; generally, however, pertaining 
to woodsy things, and in keeping with their native environ- 
ment. The pioneer camp of this section, and one of the 
most artistic in the woods, is " Camp Pine Knot," on South 
Bay. It was commenced in the winter of 1876-7, by its pres- 
ent owner, W. W. Durant, and completed — well, to tell the 
truth, these camps are never completed really, for one of the 
fascinating features of the camp is that it is bound by no rule 
of time or architecture. It expands and blossoms with the 
passmg seasons, and is never exactly the same one year that it 
was the year before, but it is always finished enough for com- 
fort — it is " otetiwi." 

Echo Camp, on Long Point, west of the Raquette Lake 
House, tasteful and artistic, belongs to ex-Gov. Lounsbery, of 
Connecticut. " Camp Otetiwi," (always ready), belonging to 
Dr. A. G. Gerster, of New York, is on the large island west 
of Camp Pine Knot. " Camp Fair View," on Osprey Island, 
belonging to C. W. Durant, of New York, is an excellent speci- 
men of ornate rustic architecture. Deerhurst Camp, on Ken- 
well's Point, belongs to Mr. Wm. Strange, of Paterson, N. J. ; 
the cottage standing on the north side of this point is that of 
Senator McCarthy of Syracuse. Senator Henderson has a 
pleasant camp on the south side of Indian Point. " Camp 



202 The Adirondacks. 

Stott," the summer place of Com. Frank Stott, of Stottville, 
N. Y., is on the long point north of Kenwell's Point. A camp 
belonging to James Tenyck, of Albany, and " Camp Has- 
brouck," are on the north shore near the outlet. 

Happy the favored visitor to one of these camps, and happy 
the owner. The fact cannot be disguised, say what you will, 
we are all children and enjoy playing house ; only, at sixty, 
we need a ten-thousand-dollar lodge in a vast wilderness, when 
at six, a piece of old carpet, stretched over a corner in the rail 
fence, satisfied all our earthly desires. 

Sumner Park is held as a private game and fish preserve 
by the owner of Camp Pine Knot. It consists of township 6 
with portions of township 5 to include the whole of Summer 
Lake and Mohegan Pond, the South Inlet and the southern 
shores of South Bay. It is all under police patrol and the 
public is warned against trespassing under penalty of the law. 
Raquette Lake owes much of its prosperity to Mr. Durant, 
and only the most rabid of communists can question the 
justice — as it is unquestionably his right — of reserving this part, 
forming less than half of his possessions in this section, for his 
personal use. 



The Adirondack League Club Preserve lies at the 
southwest of Raquette Lake, partially in Herkimer and par- 
tially in Hamilton Counties, as shown in the accompanying 
maps. This is one of the largest private sporting preserves in 
this country, the forest lands owned by the Club in fee com- 
prising nearly 100,000 acres, while it has leased the exclusive 
hunting and fishing privileges of about 80,000 acres more, ad- 
joining its property on the east and south. The Club's tract has 
an average elevation of 2,200 feet, and over twenty-five lakes 
and ponds, including what was once known as " Jock's," now 
Honnedaga Lake, the West Canada Lakes and Creek with 
numerous other noted streams and ponds. The region has 
long been celebrated as a hunting and fishing resort, its inac- 
cessibility having hitherto tended to protect both game and 



A. L. C. Preserve. 



203 



fish. The Club members have now arranged for the building 
of a railroad connecting with the Central at Herkimer, that 
will bring the edge of the tract within nine hours of New York 
City. The present approach is by wagon road from Alder 
Creek on the R. W. & O., a thirty miles drive. 



olo for 




ADIRONDACK LEAGUE CLUB PRESERVE. 



The Club was organized in 1890 by a number of gentlemen 
of sporting proclivities, for the purpose of establishing a game 
preserve in a chosen quarter of the Adirondack wilderness. One 
of their leading motives was the desire to put into practice 
the system of rational forestry prevaiHng on the continent of 
Europe, which reconciles the preservation and continual re- 
production of forest areas with a continual and increasing in- 
come. The experiment was undertaken under the most favor- 
able conditions, the Club owning over 93,000 acres, covered 
with a magnificent virgin forest of birch, spruce, pine, maple, 
cherry, cedar, hemlock and ash, and its success has already 
more than demonstrated the wisdom of the undertaking. 
Prof. B. E. Fernow, Chief of the Forestry Division of the De- 
partment of Agriculture at Washington, is one of the Trustees, 



204 The Adirondacks. 

and the forestry adviser of the Club, and its Chief Forester, 
Edward Reusch, Ph.D., a graduate of the German schools of 
Forestry, is in the active management of its forest policy. A 
contract for the removal of the spruce above 1 2 inches in 
diameter at a stumpage price, which already guarantees the 
Club an income from this source of $35,000 a year for the 
next fifteen years, is in operation, and this income, it is be- 
lieved, could be increased to $60,000 a year without detriment 
to the tract as a hunting or fishing preserve, and with positive 
benefit to the forest. Prof. Fernow estimates at a round mil- 
lion dollars the value of the merchantable timber which could 
be removed to the forest's immediate advantage. All cutting 
is done under the supervision of the Chief Forester, in such a 
way as to bring about the complete renewal of the lumbered 
portions in 15 years, so that the process might go on forever. 

The plan of the Club contemplates a possible membership 
of 500. The price of the membership shares was originally 
placed at $1,000, but as the great value of the shares, regarded 
simply as an investment, became more apparent, the Trustees 
raised this price to $1,250. Each share is unassessable and 
entitles the holder to an undivided five-hundreth interest in 
the property, with all its hunting and fishing privileges, to all 
dividends which may be declared, and also to a five acre site 
wherever selected, for a camp or cottage site, which is deeded 
to each member in fee. Most of the sites so far selected have 
been on Honnedaga or Moose Lakes. The Club House, 
formerly the "Forest Lodge," kept by A. D. Barber, Jr., is 
on Honnedaga Lake. Mr. Barber is a member and the 
steward of the Club, and furnishes accommodations for Club 
members, their families and guests. Guides, boats and all the 
accoutrements for hunting and fishing are here obtainable. 

The trustees of the Club are Hon. Warner Miller of Her- 
kimer, Mills W. Barse of Olean, O. L. Snyder of Buffalo, 
Judge Warren Higley, Judge Henry E. Howland, Henry C. 
Squires and Robert C. Alexander of New York City, A. G. 
Mills, President of the New York Athletic Club, Henry Pat- 



Fulton Chain Lakes. 205 

ton of Albany, Alexander R. Harper of Philadelphia, Prof. B. 
E. Fernow of Washington, D. C, and S. M. Dodd of St. 
Louis. A handsome club book containing maps, illustrations, 
and other interesting matter, has just been published by the 
Club. Applications for membership should be addressed to 
the Secretary, Ole L. Snyder, 40" Wall Street, New York. 
The Club house address is Wilmurt, Herkimer County. 

tK V 't* tI? 7|t TfC 'fr 

The Fulton Chain of Lakes may be reached through 
the Brown Tract Inlet, which enters Raquette Lake from 
the southwest, but is usually approached from the west via 
the Rome and Watertown Railroad, leaving at either Boon- 
ville or Port Leyden. 

Moose River is 1 1 miles from Port Leyden and 1 2 miles 
from Boonville. Daily stage from either place, $1. 

Moose River House is the regular dining place for 
travelers entering this^ gateway. It is on the western border 
of the great wilderness and affords good fishing and hunting 
for those who do not care to penetrate deeper. The house 
will accommodate about 30 guests. Rates, $2 per day, $7 
to $10 per week. C. M. Barrett, proprietor. 

The Fulton Chain Railw^ay is interesting as beginning 
and ending in the woods, and having no connection by rail 
with the outside world. It is a marvel in railroads and rolling 
stock, worth traveling a long distance to see, and somehow it 
seems more a part of the great wilderness than the conven- 
tional iron monster and steel tracks that one is accustomed to 
in the outer world. The track is of wood, 3 feet guage, the 
locomotive a nondescript, but it gets there with the traveler, 
and none are found to wish it otherwise. The road was built 
especially to meet a long-felt need — a boon from Boonville — 
that a thumped and jolted public is not slow to appreciate, 
and for which thanks are due to G. W. P. Gould and Dr. A. 
H. Crosby of that section. It is 8 miles in length, extending 
from Moose River to " Minnehaha," foot of the Stillwater, 
from which point a steamboat runs to the Old Forge. Fare 
by rail and boat, $2.00. 



2o6 The Adirondacks. 

The Bronvn Tract, comprehending the land around the 
head of Moose River, was so called after a John Brown of 
Providence, Rhode Island (who must not be confounded with 
that other John Brown, the " Old Man of Ossawatamie," who 
lies buried at North Elba). The property was bought in 1793 
and a large forge built below the first of the Fulton Chain of 
Lakes. The manufacture of iron was attempted, and 30 to 40 
families gathered here at the time, but the venture proved a 
failure, and little besides the more substantial portions of the 
old forge remains now to mark the spot. 

The Forge House is at the old forge dam, below First 
Lake, and affords accommodation to 40 or 50 guests. Alger 
& Keets, proprietors. 

The Fulton Chain of Lakes are eight in number. The 
old forge dam, two miles below First Lake, floods back into 
the Fifth, giving uninterrupted navigation from the Forge 
House to this point. The First, Second and Third Lakes are 
closely connected and collectively three miles in length. The 
Fourth is nearly six miles long, and contains a number of 
pretty islands. A half mile stream connects Fourth with Fifth 
Lake, and a half mile carry leads into the Sixth ; a mile of 
rough boating or portage along the stream leads from Sixth 
into Seventh Lake, which is about two miles long ; thence by 
stream one mile, and portage along the stream another mile 
into Eighth Lake. This one is also about two miles in length. 
At its head a trail ij miles long may be followed toward the 
northeast, leading into Brown Tract Inlet, which, followed 
downward four miles, brings the voyager to Raquette Lake. 
Total from the Forge House about 26 miles. 

There are several public and private camps along the shores 
of the lakes, the greater number being on Fourth Lake, Some 
of these camps may be rented " furnished " with the services 
of the proprietor and necessary help. 

Fourth Lake House at the foot of Fourth Lake, has ac- 
commodations for 60 people j rates $io.oo to $18.00 per 
week. C. S. HoUiday, manager and proprietor. 



i 



Beaver Lake Country. 207-A 

Cedar Island Camp near the head of the lake is kept by 
W. C. Augur. Rates $2.50 per day; $10.00 to $15.00 per 
week. This whole section is in its transition state and develop- 
ing rapidly. 

Steamer " Fulton " Captain E. L. Sheppard, runs two trips 
daily, leaving the head of Fourth Lake morning and after- 
noon. Fare $1. 

Camp Craig is on the east side of Big Moose Lake, about 
6 miles in an air Hne north of Fourth Lake of the Fulton 
Chain. It may be reached through Bub's, Moss, and Second 
Lakes of the North Branch Chain. It is a furnished camp 
where guides are expected to do the work for their individual 
parties. Supplies furnished by the proprietor. Rates $1.50 
per day. H. H. Covey, proprietor. A trail leads west into 
Twitchel Lake thence north to Beaver River. 

Beaver Lake Country is entered generally from the west 
via Lowville. Special conveyance carrying parties of four or 
five to Fenton's cost $6. It will be well to make arrange- 
ments for transportation in advance. Address, Charles Fen- 
ton, Number Four, in advance. 

The Fenton House stands on an elevation, overlooking 
Beaver Lake, 133 feet above the water. In addition to the 
main building are cottages suitable for famiUes, with an aggre- 
gate capacity for 150 guests. The proprietor promises 'Ho 
show from one to five deer around the lake, within sight of the 
hotel, toward the close of any day in the early summer." The 
powerful " Beaver River Club," whose tramping ground this 
is, is opposed to " hounding." As a result, deer that have 
been driven from other sections by the dogs seek this quieter 
place ; and the true sportsman never lacks for game worthy of 
his skill. Superior trout-fishing is also to be had in Beaver 
River ; and, in short, " Number Four," which is the post office 
address, offers a combination of excellent sport with reasona- 
ble ease of access. This house is open all the year. Rates, 
$2 per day, $9 to $10 per week. Charles Fenton, proprietor. 



The Adirondacks. 207-B 

Beaver Lake is about ij miles in length. A smaller body 
of water, closely connected on the south, is called Beaver 
Pond. Crooked Lake may be reached by boat, ij miles, and 
carry to the north if miles. Francis Lake is about one mile 
south, and is something over one mile in length. Beaver 
River is quite rough above Fenton's for 9 miles, above which 
is found good boating for twenty-five miles ; then alternate 
boating and carries for six miles brings us to Albany Lake. 
Albany Lake is four miles in length. Its main inlet, entering 
from the north, is two miles long, navigable most of the way, 
and brings the water of Smith's Lake. The latter is nearly 
three miles in its longest diameter. The house kept here for- 
merly by James La Mont will be closed this season. 

The Adirondack & St. Lawrence Railway, Dr. W. 
Seward Webb, president, now under construction, is expected 
to be in service in 1892. The line leaves the N. Y. C. at 
Herkimer and extends through the western part of the Adi- 
rondacks in a north-easterly course to Malone. A section of 
the main line from Tupper Lake northward, will be in opera- 
tion about the first of August. Vestibule trains will run solid 
from New York via the N. Y. C. & H. R., the R. W. & O., 
and the N. A. Railroads to Paul Smith's and the Saranac 
Lakes. Time about 13 hours. The plan contemplates branches 
from a point a little north of Fulton Chain Lakes, eastward to 
Raquette and Blue Mountain Lakes, and from Saranac Lake 
to Lake Placid. 

Ne-Ha-Sa-Ne Park is the latest large acquisition of 
Adirondack land by private parties to be set aside for a pre- 
serve. Dr. W. Seward Webb, the railroad magnate is at the 
head of the Association and authorizes the statement that 
hotels will be closed this year, that no camp will be allowed to 
be built on the property, and that the forest, fish and game 
will be preserved. The Park covers an area of about 160 
square miles, in the northwest portion of Herkimer and the 
northeast corner of Hamilton Counties, including in its terri- 



Cranberry Lake. 207-c 

tory the Red Horse Chain, Albany, Smith's and other lakes 
of that section. Ne-Ha-Sa-Ne is Indian for *' Crossing on a 
log." 

'K ^ ^ Tf ^ ¥: ^/: ^ 

The Carthage and Adirondack Railway extends from 
Carthage to Benson Mines, a distance of 43 miles. Lake 
Bonaparte, 17 miles from Carthage, is of some note as a sum- 
mer fishing resort, with a comfortable hotel, and was first 
brought into notice as the retiring place of Joseph Bonaparte, 
the nephew of his uncle. Oswegatchie Station is 39 miles 
from Carthage. From this point it is six miles to Fine, where 
boats may be taken by prearrangement with guide, for Cran- 
berry Lake via the Oswegatchie River. Star Lake is 2|- 
miles south of Oswegatchie station, where two good hotels sup- 
ply necessary entertainment. Benson Mines is the terminus 
of the road. From this point a trail leads south to the head 
of the overflow of Cranberry Lake and another to the outlet. 

Cranberry Lake was originally about six miles in length, 
but a dam built at its outlet increased its area considerably 
and changed its shape. Its altitude is 1,540 feet. 

Cranberry Lake House stands near the outlet, and can 
provide entertainment for 50 guests. Rates, $ i o. 50 per week ; 
$2 per day. Mrs. E. J. Bishop, proprietor. P. O., Russell. 
Camp supplies and boats can be had here and guides 
secured by notice given in advance of arrival. Fine fishing is 
found on the river below the lake, and on the various brooks 
and ponds emptying into it. As good hunting, probably, as 
the Adirondacks afford, can be found at the south, at points 
easily reached. The " all land " route to Cranberry Lake is 
from De Kalb Junction, but the stage service is uncertain, 
and it would be well before going to address Mrs. Bishop for 
particulars. 

******* 

I wish you a pleasant journey and a safe return. 



CHAPTER XVIII. 




Outfits, Supplies, Guides, etc. 

'OR Camp Outfit and genera, woods iile 
the following is recommended : A complete 
change of underclothing; two pairs of ser- 
viceable socks, but slightly heavier than youi 
habitually wear at the season (soft wool is 
preferable) ; pair blue flannel shirts with widei 
collars, confined at the throat by a substan- 
tial silk handkerchief. If the unaccustomed 
material chafes the neck, the shirts may bel 
put on outside the garment ordinarily worn, 
in which case linen collars must not be forgotten. The: 
pants and vest should be of some strong woolen goods,, 
the coat the same, cut rather short and to button close: 
up to the neck. Have pockets ample and numerous, 
with covers; you will find use for them. Wear a soft 
felt hat with a reasonably wide brim. By grasping it in 
a manner easily learned the rim forms a convenient drink- 
ing cup. Do not commit the too common error of pro- 
curing new shoes or boots for the occasion. A pair of 
laced shoes, roomy, but not too loose, well broken to the 
foot, with broad soles and rather low heels, is best. The 
uppers should be of rather light grained kip or water- 
proof leather. Have leather or canvas leggings, strapped 
under the instep and buttoning, or to lace at the side well 
up toward the knee. Boots may be used in place of shoes 
and leggings, if preferred, but the evidence is largely in favor 
of the shoe. It is well to have a duplicate pair for alter- 
nate* in wet weather. Rubber boots, although coxivenient 



Outfit. 209 

at times, are not suitable for general wear or for traveling. 

A ligl^t overcoat will be found very comfortable at times. 

Among the necessaries should be included rubber coat and 

overalls for use in rainy weather, for the best fishing is often 

found under dripping clouds. Have also a light rubber 

blanket to throw over the knees and feet when in boat, or 

to protect you, in sleeping, from moisture below or above. 

For sleeping or lounging in camp take a pair of common 

canvas slippers and sew on them cloth tops to come up 

k around the ankle, and tie outside the pants. A light cloth 

le cap will be found comfortable for night use. 

I- Ladies' Outfit contemplates a subject in which I would 

u not presume to dictate ; I have learned better. I humbly 

is submit, however, that it is your first duty to make yourself 

e as attractive as possible, subject only to the requirements of 

1- place and season ; and I would suggest that, whatever may 

d be allowable in the way of " fine " dressing, it is not consid- 

e ered necessary, or even in good taste. Often the sweetest 

ii girls that ever brightened the wilderness with their presence 

{ reign queens of the evening in the same bewitching costume 

ii in which they boated and climbed mountains in the early 

e morning. Consult some lady friend who has spent a season 

in the woods as to what constitutes a suitable outfit. In 

t absence of such source of information the following is sug- 

] gested for boat, camp and tramp : Underclothing, such as 

, experience has shown best suited to the season and your 

, individual comfort, giving fine flannel the preference in all 

but the very warmest of weather. Underskirts should gen- 

. erally be of dark flannel, although, if much walking is done, 

. one of dark cotton will be found an agreeable substitute. 

A becoming dress may be made of blue or gray flannel or 

I ladies' cloth. It may be pleated back and front, gathered 

at the waist, or fitting loosely to the form, but should in any 

case allow perfect freedom in the use of the arms. The 

skirt should be not overfull, and cut a finger shorter than the 

ordinary walking dress; trim but little, in shades of same 



2IO The Adirondacks. 

color as body ; a cord at wrist, collar and waist-band, with 
a knot of ribbon or a wild flower at the throat, is sufficient. 
A dainty bit of ruffling or old lace about the neck transforms 
the morning into an evening toilet. Wear a soft felt hat 
with wide brim ; trim with forest leaves. Wear a lady's hat, 
if they differ from men's — don't ape masculinity in dress ; 
the average Adirondack sportsman does not admire it, 
although, if confronted by the horrid fact, he is too much 
of a gentleman to tell the truth. Wear dark, serviceable 
hose and substantial, roomy Balmoral boots, with broad 
soles and low, broad heels. Wear Lisle thread, cotton or 
doeskin gloves. They may be made with long wristlets to 
button or tie outside the dress sleeve, to guard against pos- 
sible attack of black fly or mosquito. A chatelaine belt and 
pocket, with tin drinking cup, etc., is convenient. A light 
sun umbrella of the walking-stick pattern is a comfort in 
rain or shine. A shawl will often be found acceptable of 
an evening following the warmest of days. Carry a rubber 
or waterproof circular with hood, a pair of light rubbers fc r 
the feet, and a piece of light rubber cloth to throw over the 
lap and feet if surprised in a boat by one of those fast-mov- 
ing Adirondack showers. In rough weather sit or lie low 
in the boat ; never, at such times, grasp the sides to support 
yourself. A skillful boatman will manage in safety one of 
those light Adirondack shells in the roughest of water, if j| 
allowed entire control of boat and load. Go fearlessly into ^ 
the woods. It is stated on the highest authority that not a., 
noxious plant or venomous serpent exists in the Adirondacks. || 

Camp and Outfit. — A bark or bough camp will do in 
absence of anything better, but is nothing like as comfort- 
able or convenient as a tent. An "A" tent, seven by eight 
feet on the ground, affords comfortable sleeping room for 
four, and on occasion five or even six. A rope, passing ; 
through lengthwise at the top and out at the ends, takes the 
place of ridge pole, and may be fastened to convenient trees 
or over crotched sticks, cut the proper height and tied to 



The Camp. 2ii 

stakes. The material should be of cotton, water and mil- 
dew-proof, and complete, need not weigh more than nine to 
twelve pounds. In making your bed of boughs, remember 
that solid wood, if fitted to the form, is as comfortable as a 
bed of down. Apply the fact by burrowing or hollowing 
out cavities to fit the projecting points of hip and shoulder. 
Cover the boughs with a rubber blanket, in addition to 
which each member of the party should have a pair of heavy 
woolen blankets. A small bag, to be fidled with leaves or 
moss and used as a pillow, is an improvement on a pair of 
boots, but not all that nature desires; and at the risk of 
exciting ridicule — from idiots — I am free to recommend 
a small, well-filled feather pillow. It pays for itself in a 
single night's use. A few yards of mosquito netting drawn 
across the front of the tent after a good smudge is a luxury 
which declares a big diurnal dividend. For long, forced 
marches, a hammock made of cotton duck with a cover 
of the same, but somewhat shorter, buttoned over at each 
side, and forming a sort of pocket, is, with the addition of 
rubber blanket, bed and tent combined. A little ingenuity 
will suggest manner of arranging hoops over the face to 
cover with canvas or mosquito netting, as circumstances 
may require. 

The Camp. — In selecting a camping place during warm 
weather, choose an island or an exposed point free from 
underbrush where the wind will, to a great extent, free you 
from the mosquito and fly. In cool weather, it is needless 
to say, choose the thicket ; in either case, remember that a 
cold spring or. brook and material for the camp-fire adds 
very much to your convenience. In pitching the tent, if 
on a side hill, dig a "A" shaped trench to lead running 
water on either side the tent; if on the level, ditch all around. 
A wall tent is better than the one already described, or if a 
long stay is anticpated, it pays to build log sides on which 
to mount the tent, and cover with a " fly " to insure certain 
protection from rain. A sheet-iron camp-stove caji be pro* 



212 The Adirondacks. 

cured of the dealers, or may be easily made to answer 
every purpose, if your stay in one place be long enough to 
warrant the trouble of transportation. 

A champagne basket, covered with waterproof cloth and 
provided with shoulder loops for carrying, makes an admira- 
ble pack basket. A rubber, or waterproof bag, or an ordinary 
two-bushel grain bag, with carrying loops of webbing, may be 
used for extra clothing, blankets, etc. Let your load rest 
well down on the back to carry. 

The Camp Kit may consist of a long-handled frying pan, 
a deep stew pan with cover, a nest of three or four covered 
tin pails, for water, tea, coffee, etc. ; pint tin cups, tin plates, 
a wire toaster of the gridiron pattern, a ladle or large iron 
spoon, table and teaspoons, knives and forks, and last but not 
least, soap, dish cloths and towels. 

Carry a pocket compass with you at all times — the best 
woodsmen are temporarily at fault. An ordinary lantern for 
camp use (for hunting Boudren's jack lamp is probably the 
best), candles, matches (a few wind and water-proof), towels, 
tooth brush, comb, pocket mirror, pins, needles and thread, a 
few extra buttons to match those worn, oil or tallow for your 
boots, stamped envelopes or postal cards (?), light hunting 
knife in sheath (?), light axe in sheath, and a supply of light 
reading of the convenient Franklin Square or Lakeside pat- 
tern. Take no large boxes with sharp corners, nor any article 
too heavy or unwieldy for one man to handle. Don't expect 
your guide to double carries habitually, rather reduce your 
baggage or get extra packmen for its transportation. 

Camp Supplies may be had from hotels generally, but 
many prefer to carry their own. Veterans need no advice ; 
but to the novice the following suggestions are made : 
First, consult your cook book, see what is needed in the 
preparation of proposed dishes and provide accordingly. 
The following list contains the staple articles : Wheat, Gra- 
ham flour, corn, and oatmeal, beans, Boston, and soda 



Supplies. 213 

crackers, lemon biscuit, baking powder, self-raising flour, 
maple sugar, loaf sugar, tea, coffee, condensed milk, bottled 
horse-radish, mustard, vinegar (?), pepper and salt in boxes 
with perforated covers, dried fruit, canned fruit (?) and but- 
ter, packed in salt and inclosed in hermetically sealed cans, 
which can be anchored in spring holes or under cold run- 
ning water. Bacon is extremely nice when sweet, as is also 
"oork, unpoetical but palatable, and on occasion taking 
place of butter and all the seasonings. Dried beef is an 
important item; "jerked venison," one of the best things 
imaginable to carry when setting out for a tramp ; ask your 
guide to show you how it is prepared. For relishes — 
shades of mighty trout and speckled beauties forgive us — 
take a box of smoked red herring. Bermuda onions fill an 
aching void which nothing else can equal. Canned beef, 
pork and beans, corn, tomatoes, condensed soup, etc., may 
be added. Fresh vegetables and potatoes can be had from 
the hotels. Carry no liquor ; if wet and cold, Jamaica 
ginger has all the heating properties of whisky; while 
strong, black coffee is a better stimulant, with none of the 
evil effects following. 

The Medicine Chest need not be extensive. It should, 
however, contain cathartic pills — a piece of Turkish rhu- 
barb is good ; cholera medicine of some kind ; a small 
bottle of collodion (composed of equal parts of alcohol and 
ether, with gun-cotton added to make it about the consist- 
ency of heavy varnish) ; applied to burns and small wounds, 
it forms an artificial skin, impervious alike to air and water ; 
ammonia, to allay irritation arising from bites of insects ; 
cold cream or glycerine, for chapped face or hands ; court- 
plaster, seidlitz powders, ointment and adhesive plasters, 
lint and bandages, to use in case of emergency. To stop 
the flow of blood from wounds, bind on equal parts of flour 
and common salt ; for burns, apply wheat flour or collodion. 

Insect Preparation may be procured of the druggist, 
9r compounded by yourself. The most convenient and 



214 The Adirondacks. 

effective, perhaps, as any, is composed of six parts of mutton 
tallow to one of oil of pennyroyal, with a little camphor added. 
In the proportion of two ounces of sweet oil and one of oil 
of tar is good. " A coating of the grease from ham rinds, well 
rubbed on, is the best yet known," says George K. Holmes, of 
Great Barrington, Mass. Annoint exposed portions of the 
person with either of the above, then stand back and mark 
the frenzy of the baffled punkey. 

Sporting Outfit. — Do not rely on what books tell you. 
If you know nothing about the subject place yourself under 
some one that does, and trust them until you can judge for 
yourself. The most enticing of fancy flies in the hands of a 
greenhorn will not yield much sport — except to outsiders — and 
the grandest achievement in modern firearms requires some 
skill in using. If you have the requisite skill, carry a rifle ; if 
not, a fowling-piece is better. For general use there is per- 
haps no more convenient or serviceable arm to carry into 
camp than the "pocket" rifle, manufactured by the J. Ste- 
vens Arms and Tool Company of Chicopee Falls, Mass. A 
12 to 1 5-inch barrel, 32-calibre, is recommended. The weight 
is less than three pounds. A shot-gun barrel is also made to 
fit the same frame, so that either may be used at will. Are 
you artistic ? Carry a camera of the Kodak pattern or with 
small plate. A plate large enough to make a lantern slide 
yields a larger per-centage of comfort than any other size 
made. 

Guides receive $2.50 to $3 per day, furnishing boat and 
necessary cooking and table utensils. They cook and do 
other necessary camp work, and row and " back " the boat 
over the carries, where there are no other means provided; (in 
cases where horses are used the employer is expected to pay 
for transportation.) One guide and boat is ordinarily suffi- 
cient for two persons, but for independence in fishing and 
hunting each sportsman should have his individual guide. 
There are two classes, known respectively as '' ho- 
tel" and "independent." The former are engaged for 
the season by hotel proprietors, who relet them to par- 



« 



Guides. 215 

ties ; the latter must be dealt with personally. There are 
eciually good men in both classes, as the nature of the sur- 
roundings usually determines to which they shall belong ; 
therefore it is impossible to give rules for the selection of a 
guide, or to discriminate between them, as only experience 
can determine their suitability for your peculiar wants. As 
a class they are a noble set of men, who, aside from the 
natural deference due the employer from the employed, ad- 
mit of no inequality, and reflect back their usage ; although 
there are exceptions to the rule in man as in master. If 
only reasonable service is asked, there can usually be no 
complaint; if fawning servility is expected, there is a rea- 
sonable doubt as to the result, for one who knows enough 
for the profession knows when he is well used. The best 
guides are often engaged for a year in advance, and some 
VTOuldas soon think of going without a gun as without their 
favorite guide. Some parties have attempted to do the 
Adirondacks by aid of map, compass and book, and with- 
out the aid of a regular guide ; this, however, is full of hard- 
sliips that are easily avoided by those accustomed to the 
country, and, if comfort, distance and time lost in out-of- 
the-way places are taken into consideration, attended with 

I but little economy. 

I Lists of guides heretofore published are now omitted, as 
the title is no longer an indication of fitness for the position. 
The office is one of responsibility and it is due to those who 
ire competent and honest that a distinction should be made 
between them and others who claim the title without possess- 
ing the necessary qualifications. The safety and comfort 
Df the traveler depends largely on his guide, and some guar- 
mtee should be furnished by the one employed. A guides* 
anion could provide for this, or certificates might be granted 
3y competent authority, but until some such provision can 
3e made both the public and the profession must suffer. 



I 




CHAPTER XIX. 

Trout Fishing, 

N the year 1880, it seems hardly necessary, in 
speaking of trout and trout fishing, to say that 
speckled or brook trout — the salmo fonti- 
nalis of our early years, now, by authority 
of the Smithsonian Institute, savelinus fonti- 
nalis — has a square tail, and that his sides are 
speckled with yellow and red spots, and that 
he is a cousin of the lake or salmon trout, 
which has a forked tail with mottled sides, and 
which the Smithsonian Institute insists shall be called cristiro- 
mer namaycush ; for the love of angling has so grown during 
the last few years that it is not now considered a proper 
definition of fishing to say, it consists of " a stick with a string 
at one end and a fool at the other." On the contrary, those 
whose love of this sport will draw them to the brook side, 
or to the lake or pond, are men of all profession and occu- 
pation, and any one of them will tell you, if you ask him, 
that it requires skill and a knowledge of the habits of the 
trout to fill your creel. I doubt if the book was ever writ- 
ten that will make one a finished angler. To be sure one 
may gain something sometime from the written experience 
of others, but experience gained by time and patience on 
the stream is far better than any teacher. There are some 
general hints that will apply to the Adirondacks, but if it 
were attempted to enumerate all conditions for all times, 
half the anglers would say I found it so; the other half 
would say, /did not. 

When the ice has gone from the streams and ponds, and 
the sun has warmed the waters a trifle, brook trout will be 



Trout Fishing. 

found in the deep water and holes of the brooks, and it is 

iiard work to get them to rise at a fly. They probably 

mow that flico are out of season at this time. If the fish- 

ng fever is on, you must take a plebian worm and let it lay 

)n the bottom until it is sucked in by some lazy trout, then 

' yank." A little later, when the snow water is a thing of 

he past, and the fruit trees are in bloom, and the black fly 

nd the May fly are out to devour and be devoured, and 

he lazy trout, by exercise on the riffs and in rough water, 

.as become an athlete, then take your rod, attach the patri- 

ian fly, and cast ever so gently at the head of the riffs, 

diere a stone makes a little eddy, working down gradually 

3 tliie pool at the foot of the rapids, where tke heads of the 

imily " receive," if they have not already anticipated your 

isit by going up the riffs like a quarter-horse, and taken 

our fly with a leap that shows you what you have to con- 

jnd with. As the weather grows warmer they will drop 

ack to the deep shady holes, invigorated and fattened by 

leir visit to the graveled-bottom rapids. It may be that 

ou will now be obliged to advance backward to the worm 

^ t will not be sucked in now, and you will not be in doubt 

3 to whether you have a bite or no), or to a live chub or 

liner, or the tail of either, that when it is let down into the 

ble with the current and drawn up stream, it will whirl like a 

ling of life ; I say you may be obliged to resort to this, for 

lere are holes in streams where it would be folly to attempt 

) cast a fly. If a person wishes to pass them by because 

ley never fish with other than a fly, some one not so fas- 

dious may come after and bring to basket some of the 

Idest inhabitants of the brook. Should you fish one day 

id find that the trout are all seeking the seclusion which 

le deep hole grants to themselves, their sisters and their 

lusins and their aunts (I will pay my fine to any authorized 

arson), and the evening, night or next day brings a shower 

slightly raise the brook, as soon as the shower is over try 

again, but fish the rapids, for the trout have come out to 



The Adirondacks. 

see what the flood has brought for them to feast upon 
A Httle later the deep holes get warm by reason of 1om> 
water and continued hot weather. The trout have theii 
resorts at this season as well as the" angler, and so they take 
their families and travel to some portion of the stream 
where a cold spring comes in, or some spring bubbles up 
from the bottom. At these " spring holes " they will be 
found in hot weather in great numbers, if the game law has 
been observed. | 

As to flies, most people have their own ideas; but as this- 
is written for those who have just joined the brotherhood, it \ 
may be well to say that out of the countless number of flies, j 
some of them unlike any thing under the sun, the red, black, 
brown and gray hackles,* tied both as a hackle and palmer 
fashion. Coachman,* yellow professor,* light and dark fox,* 
black gnat, Romeyn Abbey, Seth Green, White Miller, 
Grizzley King,* and Queen of the Water,* constitute a 
good supply if one takes a half dozen of each. Even this 
number is considered by some too many. My fly books con- 
tain more than two gross of flies, but many kinds have never 
been used, and in all probabilities never will be. I think I 
am safe in saying that the largest trout are caught at dusk or 
during starlight or moonlight nights; if I am too broad in 
making this assertion I will modify it by saying /arge trout |l 
may be caught at this time by using a white miller, or a fly in 
which v/hite predominates; and, too, you must use a larger 
hook than the one you used during the day. If you have 
noticed a large trout in the stream during the day, and been 
unable to catch him, try him at night, if it is bright, and you 
may be reasonably sure of his rising to your light colored 
fly. Sometimes you may catch an obstinate fellow by going 
above his resting place and slightly roiling the stream, and 
as the muddy water passes over, let your fly float as naturally 

* Those indicated by a star are important, and should be in every collection. 



Trout Fishing. 

as possible with it, and the chances are in favor of your get- 
ting the trout. He probably knows that roily water means 
a freshet, and a freshet brings with it insects upon which he 
feeds. The latter portion of May and the month of June 
are considered the best portions of the open season for fish- 
ing in the Adirondacks, and morning and evening the best 
portion of the day, as the trout are then seeking their natural 
food; but the ways of the trout are past finding out, for 
there are times when they will bite at nothing. 

Although bait fishing is not to be sneered at, use a fly if 
possible ; you will have more satisfaction with half a basket 
caught in this way than with a full one taken with bait. If, 
however, you must use bait, take your angle or earth worm 
after he is scoured in damp moss, and pass your hook 
through the neck half an inch from the head, then gathering 
up a loop of the body and pass through again and again 
until you have the shank, as well as the beard of the hook, 
well covered and half an inch of " worm " over, should 
your worm-loop, or head, or tail be taken of and the fish 
not taken in, put on a fresh bait. Unless you have some 
decided objection fish down sirea7it. If you use live bait, 
(minnows) pass your hook through its back under the dor- 
sal fin, but not so low as to break the back bone ; should 
you use a portion of a minnow, cut off the tail just at the dor- 
sal fin ; put your hook in at the tail, and along the back 
bone, until the point of the hook nearly reaches the place 
cut ; your bait will then be curved to correspond with the 
bend of your hook, and will whirl nicely when drawn 
against the current. 

As to direction for flyfishing, I give it up. The best way 
is to go out with some one who uses a fly, and, in one day, 
you will learn more than from written directions studied 
faithfully for a month. There are many flies besides those 
mentioned above, should the angler desire a more extensive 
stock in his book. It may be well to mention a few, such 
as Gray Drake, Silver Black, Adirondack, General Hooker, 



iHE ADIRONDACKS. 

Scarlet Ibis, Shoemaker, Jungle Cock, Oak Fly, Brown 
Hen, Hoskins, King of the Water, Green Drake, Montreal, 
Moose, etc. As to tackle get a split bamboo, hornbeam 
or ash and lance wood rod of three joints, about eleven feet 
long, weighing eight to ten ounces. This with an extra tip 
or tips, one a little shorter than the others, will answer for 
both bait and fly, unless you propose to " yank " your fish, 
in which case you need heavier timber ; a click reel to hold 
forty yards of braided silk, tapered line waterproofed, a 
half-dozen leaders or casting lines nine feet long, of best 
round silkworm gut, and smaller hooks or flies tied upon 
O'Shaunesey or Sproat bend hooks, with a landing net of 
coarse mesh, will constitute an outfit for brook trout in the 
Adirondacks. It is poor economy to buy poor tackle ; if 
you get any get the best, even if you get less. 

The lake or salmon trout, alt' ough he will take a fly at 
times, is usually caught by trolling. The fnodus ope7'a?idi is 
as follows : With a stiftish trolling rod, a balance multiplying 
reel to hold loo yards of braided silk, or linen line No. 4, 
leaders 12 feet long of single gut, and a minnow gang, which 
is made by tying 6, 9 or 12 hooks in groups of three to a 
length of single gut with a single hook about one and a half 
inches above the upper group of hooks for a lip hook, a 
gaff hook, and a pail of minnows completing the outfit. I 
am too fast ; you also require two or three pounds of lead. 
Lake trout fishing is in order as soon as the ice leaves the 
lakes, but at this time the trout are at the bottom, so put 
your rod together, put on your reel, pass your line through 
the standing guides of your rod, attach your leader and 
minnow gang, put the lip hook through both lips of the live 
bait, bend the bait and put one of the group hooks through 
the back of the bait behind the back fin in such a manner 
as to make it revolve when drawn slowly through the water, 
ten or twelve feet from the joining of your casting line or 
leader and your fish line, tie on your sinker with a piece of 
line 6 or 8 feet long, weaker than your fish line, so if you 



Trout Fishing. 

catch on the bottom you will lose only your sinker. Your 
sinker must be heavy enough to carry your line nearly to the 
bottom. You can fish by letting your sinker strike bottom 
and pulling in only to let your sinker strike again, but you 
need to know the kind of bottom upon which you are fish- 
ing, as grass would soon use up your lead. This kind of 
fishing can be better shown than taught by writing, and as 
it is not necessary we will pass it. About the first of May 
the trout begin to rise to the surface, and the higher up 
they are the less sinker you require. Soon they are at the 
surface to stay only for a few days. Now you require only 
enough sinker to keep your bait well under water, or even 
no sinker at all, for wherever the trout are, bottom or top, 
the boat must be rowed very slowly. 

Buoy fishing is done by anchoring a block of wood, as a 
land-mark, or water-mark, in some deep portion of the lake. 
Morning and evening, for' two or three days, bait your buoy 
by throwing overboard bits of fish cut up about the size of 
a butternut ; this will sometimes attract the fish and keep 
them around the buoy. When you think it baited, put on 
your hook a piece of fish like that you have used, or a live 
minnow, and drop it over, and keep your bait moving up 
and down by a shght motion of your hand, until the sun 
gets too hot, or your seat gets too hard, or you make up 
your mind that there are better ways of fishing. If this 
last happens, stick to it, and let some one else jig their line 
in loo or 125 feet of water, with the result: "Oh, a 
trout just breathed on the bait, but that was all !" Buoy 
fishing is not practiced now nearly as much as in former 
years, but trout are yet caught in this manner. The open 
season is from April ist to October ist, brook trout, April 
I St to September ist. I have of necessity omitted much 
that might be said about trout fishing, and perhaps written 
what could as well be omitted; but will say in conclusion, 
let the " sign " be in the head or in the feet, the next time 
you try them, may your baskets be filled with fair-sized 
trout, but leave the little ones in the water to grow. 

A. N. Cheney. 



Game Laws. 

The open season for game found in the Adirondacks is by law 
as follows : Ruffled grouse, commonlv called partridge, from 
September ist to January ist; wiia fowl, September ist to May 
1st; woodcock, August ist to January ist; hares or rabbits, 
November ist to February ist; squirrels (black or gray) August 
1st to Januar}'^ ist; deer from August 15th to November ist 
Deer may be hunted with dogs (except in St, Lawrence County) 
from September ist to October 20th. No person shall kill more 
than three deer in one year. No deer or venison shall be trans- 
ported from the Adirondacks by any person or common carrier, ,| 
except from the 1 5th of August to the 1 5th of November, and 
between such dates but one deer or carcass can be transported 
for each owner, and it must be accompanied by the owner. No 
fawn shall be killed at any time. The penalty for the violation 
of any of the provisions of the deer law is $100. 

The open season for brook trout, California and brown trout 
in the counties constituting the forest preserve is from May ist 
to September 1 5th; lake trout and land-locked salmon from May 
ist to October ist. Elsewhere in the State the brook trout 
season opens April ist and closes September ist, and in Lake 
George, lake trout can only be taken from May ist to October 
ist. No trout or salmon can be transported from the Adiron- 
dacks except when accompanied by their owner. 

Black bass can be caught in Lake George and Brant Lake 
only from August ist to January ist; in Schroon Lake and 
River, Paradox and Friends Lakes only from July 15 to Janu- 
ary 1st; elsewhere in the Adirondacks from May 3010 January 
ist. Black bass under eight inches in length or one-half pound 
in weight must be returned to the water uninjured. 

No one is permitted to deposit any fish in the waters of th« 
Adirondack region unless the fish so deposited are indigenous 
to the particular water where placed, except that non-preying or 
non-destructive fish which constitute lood for fish of the salmon 
family may be deposited. 

A. N. Cheney. 



Where and Where Not to Fish. 

In 1882 Mr. Fred Mather, the well known fish culturist, ex- 
plored a great portion of what is known as Adirondack 
waters for the purpose of making an ichthyological report 
to accompany the report of the Adirondack survey. Mr. 
Mather's researches have only recently been given to the pub- 
lic, and no part of them will prove of more interest to the sum- 
mer visitor to the great wilderness than that relating to the dis- 
tribution of the fishes known to the anglers as the "game 
fishes ;" such as are captured by rod and line. For the names of 
the lakes, ponds and streams that are used in the report, 
he relied upon Stoddard's map of the Adirondack wilder- 
ness. Mr. Mather supplemented his summer's work of per- 
sonal exploration and examination by reports from guides and 
others regarding waters that he had not the time to visit. So 
that his report, so far as it goes, is reasonably correct and 
trustworthy. 

Brook trout are not found in the following waters : Metcal, 
and T Lakes, tributaries of West Canada Creek, Spectacle, Dex- 
ter, Spy, Oxbow, Metcalf, Coal, Scuts, Willis, Murphy, Warner, 
Remson and Bug Lakes. All others are supposed to contain 
them. 

Lake trout, commonly called salmon trout, are not found in 
the following waters : None of the lakes of West Canada Creek 
except Spruce, Indian, Ferris, Christian, Morehouse, Jersey- 
field, Goodluck, Oxbow, Metcalf, Sheriff, Canada, Coal, Willis, 
Nicks, Little Woodhull, Stone Dam, Wilmurt and the Eagle 
Chain of Lakes. By implication the other lakes in the Adiron- 
dacks do contain lake trout. 

Black bass are found in Raquette, Forked, White, Fourth, 
Bisby, Sucker, the Blue Mountain Chain and the Fulton Chain 
of Lakes, Moose and Black Rivers. 

The Rainbow (California) trout have been placed in -Fulton 
Chain, Bisby, Woodhull, Pleasant, Round, Horn, and Jones 
Lakes, Moose, Oswegatchie and Black Rivers, and Silver Lake. 

Land-locked salmon have been planted in Woodhull, Mur' 
Sand, Little Moose and the Fulton Chain of Lakes. 



2i8 Forest Commission. 

The Forest Commission, hiaving charge of the forest preserve, 
was created by Chapter 283 of the laws of 1885. The commis- 
sioners now in office are Theodore B. Basselin, Townsend 
Cox, and Dudley Farlin. Charles O. McCredie, Secretary. 

The warden is Col. William F. Fox. It is a responsible 
office, as upon the efficiency of the officer rests largely the ques- 
tion of success or failure in what is yet but little more than an 
experiment. The result so far has shown that the one item 
of trees which the honest but giddy lumbermen cut annually 
by mistake on land belonging to the State, amounts to 'thou- 
sands of dollars. 

The lands constituting the forest preserve are the lands now 
owned, or which may hereafter be acquired, by the State of 
New York within the counties of Clinton (excepting the towns 
of Altona and Dannemora) Delaware, Essex, Franklin, Ful- 
ton, Hamilton, Herkimer, Lewis, Saratoga, St. Lawrence, 
Oneida, Warren, Washington, Greene, Ulster and Sullivan ; 
"and the forest preserve shall be forever kept as wild forest 
lands." 

The Forest Commission has power to appoint a forest war- 
den, forest inspectors, guards and fire wardens. The forest 
warden, forest inspectors, foresters and other persons acting 
upon the forest preserve under the written employment of the 
forest warden, or of the Forest Commission, may, without 
warrant, arrest any person found upon the forest preserve vio- 
lating any provisions of the act creating the commission. 

It also has the same power to bring action for trespass and 
to recover damages for injury, or to prevent injury to the pre- 
serve which any owner of lands would be entitled to bring. 

The fire wardens have power to call upon any person in the 
territory in which they act for assistance in suppressing fires, 
and every person refusing to act when so called shall be liable 
to a fine of not less than five nor more than twenty dollars. 

Any person who shall wilfully or negligently set fire to any 
forest lands belonging to the State, shall be liable to a fine of 
not less than fifty nor more than five hundred dollars, or to im- 
prisonment of not less than thirty days nor more than six months. 



Routes to Gateways. 

HOW TO REACH THE ADIRONDACKS is naturally the 
first question asked, and to be answered here. The object of this 
chapter is to get the traveller from the great city to the grand old 
wilderness. 

The New York Central and Hudson River Railroad carries 
the larger proportion of the people who go up out of Gotham to the 
lakes and mountains at the north. Without ostentation, it provides 
its patrons with the best of service at the minimum of cost. Special 
fast trains leave the Grand Central Station for Saratoga and Lake 
George during the season, one leaving at about 9 a. m., reaching the 
points mentioned early in the afternoon. Another at about 3,30?. 
M., reaches Saratoga at 9 o'clock, and on Saturday night runs to 
Lake George, returning on Saturday evening. A train leaving at 
6.25 p. M., with through sleepers attached, connects early in the 
morning at North Creek with stages for Blue Mountain Lake ; at 
Westport with stages for Elizabethtown and Lake Placid ; at Port 
Kent for Au Sable Chasm, and at Plattsburgh with trains for Au 
Sable Station and Saranac Lake. For time tables or any desired in- 
formation address George H. Daniels, General Passenger Agent, 
Grand Central Station, N. Y. 

The West Shore Railroad, during the season of summer travel 
run? through trains from Washington to the Adirondacks. Pas- 
sengers and baggage are taken from Jay and 42d Streets, New York. 

The Day Boats are the '' New York" and " Albany " — new and 
splendid specimens of shipcraft, with iron hulls 300 feet in length, 
accommodating 1,800 passengers, and claimed to be the fastest steam- 
boats in the world. They were built exclusively for carrying passen- 
gers. The spacious cabins are finished in highly polished woods, 
are furnished luxuriously, and adorned with statuary and paintings. 
The dining-rooms are on the main deck, where the traveler can en- 
joy an excellent dinner, which is served on the European plan, and 
lose nothing of the view of this most charming of American rivers. 
They leave New York and Albany at about 8:30 A. M., touching at 
the principal landings on their way, meet near Poughkeepsie, and ar- 
rive at their destinations at about 6 p. m. A pleasant feature is an 
orchestra on each steamer. During the season, fast trains run to and 
from Saratoga to connect with these boats, and on Saturday night 
run through to Lake George. Fare, |2. F. B. Hibbard, G. P . A., 
Desbrosses Street Pier, New York. 

The People's Line Steamers, " Drew" and " Deai Richmond," 
form the night line between Albany and New York. They have few, 
if any, equals in size, equipment, or accommodations, combining all 
the conveniences of a first-class hotel, and well deserving the name, 
so often bestowed, of floating palaces. Meals are served on the Eu- 
ropean plan. M. B. Waters, General Passenger Agent, Albany, N. Y. 

The Citizens' Line Steamers, " Saratoga" and "City of Troy," 
are also fine specimens among this distinctive class of river boats. 
They are of light draft, and fitted up with a view to speed in 
traveling. The state rooms are commodious, heated by steam 
in cold weather, and are complete in all their appointments. 
Meals are served on the European plan, in a style equal to 



Routes to Gateways. 

the best of hotels. Free transportation carriages between the depot 
and steamboat landing at Troy attend evening trains and baggage is 
transported free. Geo. W. Gibson, G. P. A., Troy. 

It is advisable to secure rooms in advance by either of these lines 
during the height of the season, which may be done by telegraphing 
their respective passenger agents at Albany or Troy, or on applica- 
tion to the offices at the terminus of the lines. 

The Dela-ware and Hudson Canal Company, by its absorption of 
the Albany & Susquehanna, the Rensselaer & Saratoga and the New 
York & Canada Railroads, has become one of the most important 
carriers of summer travel in the country, and is using its great re- 
sources most energetically and effectively for the development o( 
that part of New York, including Saratoga, Lake George and the 
Adirondack Wilderness, with which it is the chief channel of com- 
munication. During the season of pleasure travel extra fast trains 
are run from Albany and Troy to Saratoga, Lake George, Platts- 
burgh and Montreal. The appointments of the road are all that can 
be desired, the cars being specially fitted for pleasure travel, and so 
comfortable that drawing-room cars are not so much a necessity as 
they may be considered on some roads. 

Southern connections are made at Troy with Hudson River 
railroad and Citizens' line steamers for New York, and with the 
Troy and Boston railroad for the east. At Albany with H. R. and 
West Shore roads, and day and night boats for New York ; with 
Albany and Susquehanna railroad for Howe's Cave (39 miles), 
Sharon Spings (58 miles), Cooperstown, on the beautiful Otsego 
Lake (91 miles), and to Binghampton (142 miles), and with New 
York Central railroad for points west. 

Northern connections (with fare from Albany). — At Mechanics- 
ville f6o cts.) with Hoosac Tunnel route for Boston ; at Saratoga 
($1.17) with Adirondack railroad for Luzerne, Schroon Lake and Blue 
Mountain Lake (see Gateway No. 7) ; at Caldwell ($2.58) with steamer 
on Lake George (Gateway No. 6) ; at Whitehall ($2.34) with trains 
from Rutland and the east ; at Ticonderoga (I3.00) with branch 
road to foot of Lake George; at Crown Point ($3-3o) with C. P. L 
Co. s railway (see Gateway No. 4) ; at Westport (I3.84) with stages 
for Elizabethtown, Keene Valley and Lake Placid (Gateway No. 3) ; 
at Port Kent ($4-65) with stages for Au Sable Chasm and Keeseville 
(Gateway No. 2) ; at Plattsburgh (.f 5.04) with Ausable Branch and 
Chateaugay railroads (Gateway No. i) for the Saranac, St. Regis 
and Chateaugay Lakes, and at Rouses Point ($5-75) with Central 
Vermont railroad for the east, and the Ogdensburg and Lake 
Champlain road to points west. 

From Whitehall north to Port Henry the route is substantially the 
same as described on pages 17 to 23; then the road bears away 
until Westport station is passed nearly a mile inland, after which it 
crosses and follows down the valley of the Boquet, passing along 
nearly two miles distant from Essex, situated on the lake shore. As 
the head of Willsborough Bay is neared, it rises gradually to more 
than a hundred feet above the water at times on some shelf cut in the 
sloping wall ; then over solid arches of stone spanning a mountain 
torrent ; anon plunging through deep cuts, and at one point diving 
into the inky darkness of the tunnel ; then out along the beetling 
cliffs, while below the deep waters dash against the perpendicular 
walls, and upward a hundred feet the red rock rising, slopes away to 
the mountain height above. 



INDEX TO ADVERTISEMENTS. 



HOTELS — Adirondacks.— Augur Lake, page 237; 
Beaver Lake, 245 ; Big Clear Pond, 261 ; Bloomingdale, 241 ; 
Blue Mountain Lake, 253, 254; Bluff Point, 238; Cascade 
Lakes, 257; Chateaugay Lake, 241; Chestertown, 253; 
Childwold Park, 245; Clear Lake, 250; Clear Pond (Big), 
245; Cranberry Lake, 245; Crown Point, 252; Elizabeth- 
town, 236, 237; Indian Lake, 247; Keene Valley, 248, 249; 
Lake Placid, 245, 247 ; Lake Pleasant, 258; Long Lake, 257; 
Luzerne, 251; Moose Lake, 246; Moose River, 246; North 
Creek, 258; North River, 258; Peasleville, 239; Pitts- 
burgh, 237; Pottsville, 251; Rainbow Lake, 241; Raquette 
Falls, 257; Raquette Lake, 256; Raquette River, (Tromb- 
lee's), 245; Root's, 253; Rouse's Point, 237; Saranac Lake, 
(lower), 242, 243; (upper), 244; Schroon Lake, 252, 253; 
Stony Creek Ponds, 245 ; Tupper Lake, 246; Westport, 236; 
Albany, 235; Lake George,— 230, 231, 232, 233; 
Saratoga, 261. 

RAILROADS. — Chateaugay, 240; Delaware & Hud- 
son, 229 ; N. Y. C. & H. R., 228. 

STAGES. — Blue Mountain Lake, 239; Elizabethtown 
and Lake Placid, 236; Riverside and Schroon Lake, 237. 

LIVERY. — Lowville, 245 ; Saranac Lake, 241. 
I STEAMBOATS.— Blue Mountain and Raquette Lake, 
255; Lake Champlain and Lake George, 234; Hudson 
River, (day boats), 256 ; (night boats), 259. 

MISCELLANEOUS.— Books, 258 ; Forest and 
Stream, 262; Maps and Photographs, 263, 264; Cottage 
Sites, (Lake Placid), 251; (Long Lake), 257; Kodaks, 260; 
Photographer, 249 ; Photographic Goods, 259 ; Webster's 
International Dictionary, 259. 



228 



Passenger Rates from New York 



iziK 



• • • 



NEW YORK CENTRAL 



AND 



HUDSON RIVER RAILROAD 



AND CONNECTING LINES. 



NOTE. — Through tickets to the following points are on sale at all New 
York offices of the New York Central and Hudson River Railroad. Excurs- 
ion tickets are issued at prices given in the column of figures under "And 
Return " 

For further information apply to George H. Daniels, General Passenger 
Agent, Grand Central Station, New York. 



And 
TO Return. 

Albany $3-io $6.00 

Au Sable Chasm 14 -5° 

Au Sable Station 8.60 15.85 

Blue Mountain Lake. . 8.95 17.00 

Baldwin 6.70 

Caldwell* 5.55 10.25 

De Kalb Junction 8.61 

Elizabethtown 7.80 14.50 

Forked Lake 10.70 20.50 

Fort Ticonderoga 5.95 

Glens Falls 4-80 8.80 

Gouverneur 8.21 

Lake Placid: 

via Plattsburg & Cha- 

teaugay R, R 11.60 22.50 

Lake George* 5.55 10.25 

Through and return 

via Ticonderoga.... 

Loon Lake 10.90 

Lake Luzerne, (Hadley) 4.86 



13-15 

20.30 

8.80 



TO 

Malone $9.90 

Montreal 10.00 

via Lake George. . . . 12.00 

North Creek 5.94 

Northville 4.98 

Paul Smith's 12.00 

Plattsburgh 8.00 

Port Kent 7.60 

Potsdam 9.21 

Raquette Lake 10.20 

Riverside 5.70 

Rome 5.30 

Rouse's Point 8.70 

Saratoga 4.20 

Saranac Inn 12.85 

Saranac Lake (lower). 11.35 

Schroon Lake 7 45 

Troy 3.15 

Westport 6.81 



And 
Return. 



18.25 
20.25 
II. 

21.25' 

14.7s 
14.00 

19.50 
10.50 



750 
23-25 
21.15 
14.00 

12.45 



* During the season a Special Excursion Ticket is issued for $8.56, good 
on Saturday to Caldwell, and return following night. 



•^THEf^ 




TO THE 



ADIRONDACK MOUNTAINS, 

MONTREAL-; QUtBtC, 

Lake George, Lake Champlain, Au Sable Chasm, 

Saratoga, Round Lake, Howe's Cave, Sharon 

Springs, Cooperstown and the 

CELEBRATED GRAVITY RAILROAD, between 
Carbondaie and Honesdale, Pa., 

6T miles shorter than any other line, between New York, Albany 

or Troy to the St. Regis Lakes. 

ONLY AN HOUR'S STAGE RIDE TO LAKE PLACID. 

The completion of the Cbateaugay R. R. from Plattsburgh to 
Saranac Lake, opens up the very heart of the Adirondack Moun- 
tains to direct Rail Communication. 

Loiy Price Excursion Tickets 

To all the famous Adirondack, Lake George and Lake Champlain 
resorts are on sale at the Company's offices, Albany, Troy and 
Saratoga, during the season of pleasure travel. 



H.C.YOUNG, 

20 VICE-PRESIDENT. 



J. W. BURDICK- 

GENERAL PASSENGER AGENT, 

ALBANY. N. Y. 



231 

CHANGE IN OWNERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT. 



-W^^ 



FQItT-WiLLinn '- - 



Lake George. 

0. D. SEAVEY, of the Hotel Ponce de Leon, and 
Alcazar, St. Augustine, Fla,, Manager. 



This Hotel, which is the only "Great Hotel " at Lake George, is 
one of the largest and best appointed summer houses 
in the world. 

Its lake frontage is three hundred and thirty four feet, along 
which runs the finest and broadest veranda on the continent. Its 
grounds are spacious and elegant. The furniture and all the appurte- 
naces are of the best, a fast running elevator, a first-class orchestra, 
and every other convenience and luxury which the choice or taste of 
guests may demand, are provided. 

The new railroad station and steamboat landing is only a few 
rods east of the hotel, and an omnibus will meet every train and boat. 

In the office of the hotel tickets are sold and baggage checked 
to all points. 

The general telegraph office for Lake George is located in the 
hotel, and furnishes free stock quotations daily. 

Board, per day, $4.00, $4.50 and $5.00 according to room. 



232 



THE MARION HOUSE, 

LAKE GEORGE, N. Y. 



Located on the west shore of the lake, about six miles north of Caldwell ; 
stands on a slight eminence, a little removed from the water ; commands a 
view of the broadest portion of the 1 ake. 

Elevator, G-as, Electric Bells, TelegTaph in the house. 

Four daily mails ; sanitary conditions perfect ; pure spring water. 

Jersey Milk, Cream and Vegetables from the Hotel Farm. 

Delightful drives. Good fishing. Every facility for amusement. 

Accomodations for 400 Guests. 

Rates, $3.50per day ; $14 to $25 per week. Send for illustrated 
book. 

D. W. SBERMAN, Proprietor. 
H. li. SHERMAN, Manager. 

Address at Glens Falls until June 20, after that date, at Lake George. 

Searl f oint Mouse, 

Lake George, N. Y. 



One of the leading hotels at the Lake. Twelve miles from Cald- 
well, on the east side, in 

THE MOST ATTRACTIVE PART OF THE LAKE, 
known as the "Narrows." It has all the requisites for pleasure 
seekers, and its 

FLEET OF SAIL AND ROW BOATS 
is the largest on the lake. 
Capacity, 150 Telegraph in the house. Four daily mails. 
Rates, $3.50 per day ; $12 to $21 per week. 



I 

D. W. SHERMAN, Proprietor. ^ 



233 

BURLEIGH HOUSE, 

TICONDEROGA, N. Y. 
E. J. WOOD, - - _ Proprietor. 

This new and elcfjant hotel is pleasantly located midway between I^ake 
Chain plain and Lake Georg^e. 

The Building: is of brick, 80x40, 4 stories above the basement. Mansard roof, 
100 commodious rooms, newly furnished and supplied with an abundace of 
Lake Georg^e water, heated by steam, lighted by electric light, hot and cold 
water baths, complete fire protection on each Hoor. All the appointments are first- 
class. Burleigh House is within three hours ride of Schroon Lake. Shortest and 
most direct way to the Adirondacks. 

Attractions include many points of historic interest within short range of this 
hotel, among which are the extensive fortifications of FORT TICONDEROGA, 
built by the French in 1755, and surrendered to Col. Ethan Allen, May 10th, 1775, 
who demanded it "in the name of the Great Jehovah and the Continental Con- 
gress. 

Mount Hope, where heavy redoubts and fortifications were made upon which 
to erect batteries to bear upon the Fort. 

Mount Defiance, which rises 750 feet above Lake Champlain. Gen. Burgoyne 
ascended this mountain from the north, July 4th, 1777, erected a battery of heavy 
guns upon its summit, completely commanding the Fort, and dislodged the Ameri- 
cans. 

Lake George, (the " Como " of America,) with its many delightful resorts, 
and thousand enchanting views. 

Lord Howe's Monument, erected near where he was fatally wounded by a 
French scout. 

Fort Frederick, built by the French in 1731, much of which remains in a good 
state of preservation. And many other localities of interest. 

FI RST-CLASS LIVERY connected with the house. GOOD BOATING within 
few minutes walk on either lake. Fine opportunity for fishing, where tons of trout 
and bass are annually taken. Hunting grounds between Lake Pharaoh and Lake 
George, abound with deer and small game. Teleg:raph and express office in the 
house. Rates of Board $10 to $20 per week. Transient, $2.50 per day. 




^ paND^ED ISLAND pengE, 

R. G. Bradley & Co, Proprietors. SHELVING ROCK, N. Y. 

Rates, $10 to $17.50 per week ; $2.50 to $3 per day. Post-office in 
the house. Particular attention given to invalids. Telegraph office 
within five minutes' walk. Fresh milk and vegetables from Shelv- 
ing Rock Farm. 



234 



^JIKE ©iJIMPtJIIN StE/IJ^ERS- 



STJMMKR ARRANGKMENT. 



SEASON OF 1891. 



"VERMONT," Capt. Ruislnlow, 

will leave Plattsburg at 7:00 a. m.; Bluff Point, 7:15 a. m. Port Kent, 
7:35 A.M.; Burlington, 8:40 A. m.; Westport, 10:10 A. m.; arriving 
at Fort Ticonderoga, 12:25 P. M., connecting with trains for the 
South and Lake George; returning, leave Fort Ticonderoga on arri- 
val of trains from the South and Lake George, 1:30 p. m.; Westport, 
3:30 P.M., for Burlington, Port Kent, Bluff Point, and Plattsburgh. 

" Cftateaugay," Captain BaldT^rin, 

will leave Westport at 7:00 A. M., touching at Essex, Burlington, 
Port Kent. Bluff Point, Plattsburg, Gordon's and Adam's, reaching 
North Hero, 12:20 p. M.; returning, leave North Hero 12:20 p. m., 
touching as above, arrive at Westport 6:45 p. m. 
NO SERVICE ON SUNDAYS. 

^J1K.E (iEOKGE §TEJlMEI(g. 

"HORICON," Capt. Nlanville. 

^ill leave Caldwell on arrival of train from Saratoga and the 
South, 9.40 A.M., for way landings and Baldwin, connecting 
with train for Lake Champlain ; returning, leave Baldwin i P.M. 
for Caldwell and the South. 

"TICOKDEROQA," Ca.pt. Arbticlcle, 

leaves Baldwin 7.30 A.M. for way landings and Caldwell, con* 
necting with train for Saratoga. Albany, and New York ; leaves 
Caldwell on arrival of train, 4.30 p.m. for Baldwin. 

9IEAL.S SERTEO ON BOARD. 

GENERAL OFFICE, P. W. BARNEY, 

S»rtfMgl0mf Vi, Gtwfl Su^«rimt§nd$iu 



235 





The leaqins hotel 



OF- 



-^iLjB.iL.i^^r, IN". '^- 



JUST ADDED at an Outlay of over $100,000, 
/OO ELEGANT ROOMS, 

GRAND DINING HALL, (Handsomest in the State.) 

LOBBIES, READING ROOIMS, ETC. 

CKNTRALLY LOCATED, Convenient to 
State Capital, and other public btiildings. 



FSEE OMNIBUSSES in Attendance at all Trains and Boats. 



F. W. ROCKWELL, 
Manager, 



H. J. ROCKWELL. 

Proprietor. 



236 




Abtrnnbark iKloutttams, 



^ n *» 



Centrally situated on the routes to the Saranac Lakes, Raquette 

Waters and St. Regis Lakes; Au Sable Chasm, Keene Valley 

and Mt. Marcy; Schroon Lake, Lake Placid, John 

Brown's Grave and the Indian Pass, etc. 

Ticket and Telegraph Office in house. 

Located amidst some of the finest mountain scenery in the Adirondacks. 

Good drives radiate in every direction. Guides, Horses, Carriages, and 
every requisite for mountain excursions at reasonable prices. 

Fine Orchestra for Dancing. 

The Hotel has been enlarged and improved, and has every appliance for 
health and comfort. 

An elegant line of Tally-Ho stages connecting with all trains and boats at 
Westport, and with stages at Elizabethtown for Keene Valley, Lake Placid, 
Saranac and St. Regis Lakes, etc., etc. 

RATES, $2.60 to $3.00 per day. Special to parties making a protracted stay. 

ORLANDO KELLOGG, Proprietor, 

ELIZABETHTOWN, N. Y. 

TP WEgWe^T INN, 

Westport on Lake Champlain, New York. 

Mrs. 0. 0. DANIELL, Manager. Mrs. HENRY 0. LYON, Assistant. 

A thoroughly well appointed house, with good table, pure water 
supply and excellent drainage, wide piazzas, with a superb view of 
the Lake and Mountains. 

Capacity 150. Rates, $3.00 per day. $10.00 to $21.00 per week. 

Good boating, fishing and fine drives. 

Livery stable near the house. 

It is within two minutes' walk of the Lake Champlain Transpor- 
tation Company's wharf, two minutes from the Library and Post 
Office, and ten minutes' drive from the Telegraph Office and Depot 
of the D. & H. R. R.'" 

Stages to and from interior points in the Adirondacks twice daily. 

Addresa 'Westport, N. Y., 

or 1^9 St. BotolpH Street, Boston. 



J37 



MANSION HOUSE, ^^'^^f^'T^^X^^^' 

I M Situated at the (fatoway to tho i»opular summer resorts in the, Adirontlacks, 
seven miles from Westport 600 feet above tide water. Finest mountain scenery, 
purest air and best water. No malaria, no hay fever. TabU^s unsurpassed ; av)point- 
meuts modern: sanitary arrang-ements perfect. Write for circular. Open May to Oc- 
tober. Valley House under same manasemcnt, open all the year. 

C. W. JENKINS, MANAGER. 

CUAiBERLAND FfQUSE, 

Plattsburgh, N. Y. 

Located on Trinity Square. Richly furnished. Every conven- 
ience. Table unsurpassed. Special attention given to Tourist,'! and 
Sportsmen. Free carriage to all boats and trains. Rates, $3.00 
per day. Special for extended stay. 

S. G. CORBIN, Proprietor. 







ROUSE'S POINT, N. Y. 
Lake Champlain and Adirondacks. 

Is delightfnlly situated on the shore of the beautiful Lake Champlain, near its 
northern end. Its Location makes it a very desirable residence for parties to whom 
acquatic exercises and excursions are a source of pleasure, united with charming 
land trips and amusements The air is invigorating and health-giving while the 
nights are always cool and delightful, and free from that oppressive and depressing 
sultriness eo common to summer resorts. 3 1-3 Hours from Ottaira. 

The Pleasantest and Healthiest Spot in North'n New York. 

Neither malaria nor insects; no hay fever. Everything new and clean. Sanitary 
arrangements perfect. 

The Angler will find at Rouse's Point every facility for enjoyment. Experts 
with rod and reel find here the gamiest of fish, there being an abundance of Black 
Bass, Pike, Pickerel, Muscalonge, Yellow Perch, and other vanities of the finny tribe. 

The Huntsman will find for his game bag Woodcock, Snipe, Plover and 
Duck in abundance. Steam Yachts, Boats, Carriages, and Saddle Horses. Two 
daily mails from New York. Morning Papers received in the evening. 

TERMS: $2.50 to $3.00 Per Day. 

A Liberal Reduction made for Parties remainingbythe Week and Season. 

CHAS. BECK, Hotel Windsor, 
Also Florida House, Dec. to May, St. Augustine, Fla. Rouse's Point, N. Y. 

FOWLER'S LIVERY, g ARAN A^TTTV. 

IN CONNECTION WITH 

HOTEL AMPERSAND and THE ALGONaUIN. 

Carriages to meet parties at depot on arrival of all trains, 

W. S. FOWL.ER, Proprietor. 



238 




"TI?e|1ot^lQl7a/nplai9" 

(LAKE CHAMPLAIN.) 

On the Line of the Delaware & Hudson R. R., 
Three Miles South of Plattsburgh, N. Y. 



•'-^::»f^- 



-<i^=5<?-.. 



THE SUPERB 
un^n^erJfotefoftReRortfi. 

The northern tour is not complete without a visit to the 
'' Champlain/^ the most desirable and convenient stopping 
place en-route. 

STRICTLY FIRST CLASS. 



E. N. WILSON, Manager. 



239 

Salmop I^iuer l/alley, 

FEASLEVILLE, Clinton Co., N. Y. 

Kistiing, Stiooting, Boating, Driving. 

Splendid sport in brook-trout fishing. Streams stocked with 15,000 
young trout. Deer hunting in its season. Large numbers yarded 
within two miles of the village last winter. 

"Those who seek the country for health and comfort ; for beautiful 
scenery ; for pure air and water ; for good hunting and fishing ; for 
abundant and wholesome country fare ; for a pleasant summer home 
amid a respectable and hospitable people, without the expense and 
social exaction of a fashionable summer resort, will find them all at 
Peasleville, in Clinton County, where the little Salmon River breaks 
through between the mountains into the Champlain Valley." 

Accommodations can be found among the farm houses in the valley 
and on the mountain sides. Address for particulars, 

ARNOLD &RICK:ETS0N, 

Peasleville, Clinton County, N. Y. 

ADI RON DACK STAGE CO.!J|fflH; 

5T/1QE AHh PUCK 50/lRb LINE 

BETWEEN 

noRCf) (^RGGK tp BLue mounTsin lake. 



Through R. R. tickets are sold to and from Blue Mountain Lake 

and all principal R. R. offices, and baggage checked through, and 

the Stage Co.'s Agent boards all arriving trains in season to re-check 

baggage direct to hotels. 

Direct Express service is maintained to and from all points in 
connection tvith the Adirondack and National Express Companies. 

Coach Fares are as follows: From North Creek to North River, 
50C.; to Indian Lake, (P. O.) $1.80; to Cedar River Hotel, $2.00 ; to 
Blue Mountain Lake, $3.00. Applications for buckboard carriages, 
time cards, etc., should be made by mail or telegraph to the Supt. 
Adirondack Stage Co. Line, at North Creek. 

The six and four-horse coaches are supplemented by a large number 
of very elegant canopy-top buckboard carriages, seating parties of 3 
and t; which can be engaged at a reasonable additional charge. 

Morning coaches from North Creek connect at Blue Mt. Lake direct 
with steamers for Raquette Lake and stages to Long Lake. 

WALTER V. V. MARSH, Supt 



240 

ISQl. — THIE— ISQl. 

GHATEAUGAY RAILROAD 

BETWEEN 

PLATTSBURGH AND SARANAC LAKE, 

The Short AU-Eail Line to the 

ADIRONDACK MOUNTAINS, 

— IN CONNECTION WITH THE — 

Delaware and Hudson Railroad. 



The distance between New York and Paul Smith's is 67 Miles 
sliorter than by any other route. It is the only line to 

CHAZY, GHATEAUGAY AND SARANAC 
LAKES AND LAKE PLACID. 

Only Eight Mile Stage Ride, Saranac Lake to Lake Placid. 

Drawing Room Cars on all Trains. 

Wfigner Palace Sleeping Cars on all Night Trains, 

And Wagner Drawing Boom Cars on all Bay Trains between 

NEW YORK AND PLATTSBURGH. 



Tickets, Sleeping and Drawing Room Car 

Accommodations, and Baggage 

Checked from the Prominent Hotels. 



A. L. INMAN, 

Genl. Manager. 



M. L. FRENCH, Supt., 

Plattsburgh, N. Y. 



241 



UPPER CHATEAU GAY LAKE-ln the Adirondacks. 

OLIVER TOUNa, Proprietor, - - Merrill, Clinton County, N. Y 

HOUSE OPEN SUMMER AND WINTER. 

DEER, Bear. Foxes, Squirrels and Game Birds ; Speckled Trout, Salmon Trout, 
Land-locked &ilmon, California Trout, Graylirg and White Fish are caught 
here. Post and Teiee;raph Office in the house. Base Ball and Tennis grounds. 
Good Livery, Boats and euppliep. 

RATES : $10 to $14 per week. Discount for small ehildren. 

Upper Chateaugay Lake. 

Open June 1 5th to October. 

RATES: $3 per day; $14 to $17.50 per week. Special rates for families. 

J. W. HUTTON, Prop'r. 



HeiiiffiJIiBKllillimiieEl Upper Chatoaugay Lake. 

^is Pure air and water. No malaria. Boating, bathing. Trout fishing a specialty. 
Native game, including Bear and Deer, killed by guests of the house. BOARD: per 
day, $1.50. Per week, $8.00 to $10.00. Guides and boats at reasonable rates. Spec- 
ial advantages offered for TROUT FISHING in July and August. 

Address, R. M. SHUTTS, Merrill, Clinton County, N. T. 

RAINBOW LAKE HOTEL, 

ADIRONDACKS. 

J. M. WARDNER, Prop. P. O. Rainbow, N. Y. 

T&e Best HuEling, Boating and FisMng Bronnils to tie foBDd in the Adirondacis. 

RECENT ADDITIONS and IMPROVEMENTS. House new and commodious. 
Post office and telegraph office iu the house. Mails daily. Carriages connect 
with all trains both ways. Parties leaving New York at 7:30 p m. arrive at Rainbow 
in time for dinner the following day . A bountiful supply of fresh eggs, milk and 
vegetables from Rainbow farm. Board per day, $2.50; per week, $10.00 to $15 00. 
Rainbow Lake abounds in the finest trout and affords the best trolling and fly fish- 
ing. It has been restocked with 800.000 trout the last 5 years. The largest lake trout 
on record was caught here— wt. 52 lbs. Boats, guides and supplies for parties camp- 
ing out Boating parties start within 50 feet of the house and have uninterrupted sail- 
ing through numerous lakes for over 12 miles. This is noted feeding ground for deer. 

CRYSTAL SPRING HOUSE, BloomiDgdale, Essex Co.. N. Y. 

Pleasant drives all about. Good fishing. CRYSTAL SPKINQ WATER, as pure as can be 
found in the Adirondacks, supplies the house. RATES for board, $2.50 per day, $10.00 to 
$15 00 per week. Reduction made to familes. 1>^ miles from station, fare 25 cents. The 
best of barns for guests' horses at liberal rates. WINTER BOARDERS SOLICITED. 

M. L. BALDWIN, Prop'r. Bloomingdale. N. Y. 



242 




HOTEL AMPERSAND IN WINTER. 



The JleW ph\ J^mpei'^and 

OPEN THE ENTIRE YEAR. 



Adirondacks . 



Lower aranac Lake, 

, — 5j^. 

p. 0. ADDRESS, 

Ampersand, Kra.n.k:lin Co., N. Y. 

One and a quarter miles from Saranac Lake Station, Chateaugay Railroad. 
Tally-ho Coach meets all trains. Fifteen hours from New York, via New York 
Central and Hudson River Railroad or Hudson River steamers. During the past 
year a large extension has been added to the hotel also an annex building, especial- 
ly for young men. The entire house is heated by steam and lighted with ^as. 
Electric Bells, Elevator, bath room on each floor and private bath rooms adjoining 
large front rooms. Open fire-places in all public rooms and large bedrooms. 

Cuisine and service of highest standard of excellence, Farm in connection with 
hotel. Especial inducements for young people. Tennis Court, Base-Ball Field, etc. 

T3ra,33LS±©32L-bs S^.OO j^gjc cia3r. 

Diagram of rooms and illustrated book free on application. Other information 
cheerfully given. Lake Steamer lands at hotel dock, also connections made by 
Stage, Boat and Rail for all resorts. 

Trout Fishing from May i. to Sept. 15 

Deer Huntinf from August 15. to Nov. i. 

Fox and Hare shooting during Winter Months. 

General Store in hotel, Boats, Guides, Fishing tackle. Camp outfits and supplies 
furnished. 

EATON & YOUNG, Managers. 



243 

S ARAN AC LAKE HOUSE, 

Saranac Lake, Adirondack Mountains, New York. 
AN UNSURPASSED SUMMER RESORT FOR SPORTSMEN if FAMILIES. 

Situated on the east shore of the lovely " Lower Saraiiac Lake," at an elevation 
of 2,000 feet above sea level. Deer, the trout, wild duck and other fjame are plen- 
tiful, furnishing^ a constant succession of sports from May to November. 

The hotel is one of the largest and most commodious in the Adirondacks ; nearly 
surrounded by a broad piazza, with 1,000 feet of promenade ; has accommodations 
for 250 guests. 

ROOMS LARGE AND WELL VENTILATED. 

The table is the best in the mountains, and has all the delicacies of the season — 
as good as the best at Saratoga. Trout and Venison at all times. 

THE LOCATION AND CLIMATE 

is such that it is highly recommended by eminent physicians for those suffering 
from lung and pulmonary diseases, etc. Malaria and hay fever are unknown. 
Telegraph, Post Office, Boats and Livery connected with house. 

FIRST-CLASS IN ALL RESPECTS. 
For terms and further particulars, address, 

D. J. GILLIGAN, Proprietor, 
H. H. TOUSLEY, CLERK. Saranac Lake, N. Y. 



I70 • ^Igor^qdirp/' 



(FORMERLY ALEXANDER'S,) 

ADIRONDACK MOUNTAINS. 




Located distant from Chateaugay Railroad Station and Village 
of Saranac Lake one and a half miles, on an eminence above the 
Low^er Saranac Lake, and commanding a most superb view of 
Mountains, Woods and Water. 

THK IDEAL IVIOUNTAIN RESORT, 

and acknowledged to be one of the prettiest spots in the Adirondacks. 
Extensive amusement grounds, including a good dirt Tennis Court, 
etc., in connection with the house. Good walks. First-class Livery. 
Safe Boating. Cuisine and service the best. 

Rates from $13 to $25 per week; $3 to $4 per day. 



Telegraph and Poet Oflice address : 
SARANAC LAKE, N. Y. 



JOHN HARDING, Proprietor. 

Late of Eaton & Harding, Hotel Ampersand. 



244 



5ARANAe»INN 

UPPER SARANAC LAKE. 

Post Office Address, SARANAC INN, Franklin Co., N. Y. 



THE COUNTRY OF FISH AND GAME 

AND HEALTHFUL RECREATION. 



TERMS AT THE INN, - - $3.50 Per Day. 

Special Rates t>y tine AVeelc. 



Trout Kislning from May ist to September 15th. 

Deer Hiinting from August 15th to November ist. 

Boats, Guides, Fishing Tackle, Supplies and Camp outfits furnish- 
ed at the house. Correspondence solicited. Circulars and Maps 
sent on application. 

D. W. RIDDLE, Manager. 



W^WBEEK II0D6E, 



Adirondacks. 



The new house on upper Saranac Lake. Open from May 1st to October 15th. For 
further information please address 

T. EDMUND KRUMBHOLZ, Manager, 

Telegraph and Post Office. WAWBEEK^ N. Y. 

McCOY'S RUSTIC UOPG^, 

UPPER SARANAC LAKE. 

Fourteen miles by water from Saranac Station on Chateaugay Railroad. Daily 
mails. SuPHRB Fishing and Hunting. 

Rates, Si3.50 per Day; iSlO to *14 per Week. For Season Rates 
apply at Office. 

Open May ist to October 20th. Guides, Boats and Hunting and Fishing 
Supplies furnished. Pleasant walks. Good drives. Telegraph communications 
within twenty minutes walk of the house. 

Post Office address, Sakanac Lake. £. R. McCOY, PROPRIETOR. 

HI A \;t/ AXHA HnilSLP stony Creek Ponds, Adiron. 
ir\YV/\l Iin IIV/UOL» dacks. On tlie celebrated 

Indian Carry between the Upper Saranac and Raquette waters. Newly furnished 
and surroundings beautified. Will be kept in first-class manner. We will make every 
effort to please the sporting people. Deer seen almost daily from the house. Abundance 
of trout in the pond and brooks within thirty rods of the door. 

CBC-A_S. "W-A-ItlDZSrEI?,, 3Pa?OI537let;OX'- 






245 

CHILDWOLD RARK HOUSE, 

AND COTTAGES, 
Lake Miassawepie, Ctiilciwolci Parle. 

Is an exceeding-ly attractive Game and Fish, Preserve charmingly 
located in the Wilderness of the Adirondacks. 

The Park consists of upwards of five thousand acres, embracing Lake Mas- 
sawepie and a group of fine, charming, mountain lakelets. 

THE CHILDWOLD PARK HOUSE was erected in 1889 by the owners of 
the Childwold Estate. It is located in a fine grove of majestic forest trees, 
between two of the Park Lakes and commands an uninterrupted view of 
Lake Massawepie. The House is thoroughly constructed, pleasantly and 
conveniently arranged, and admirably adapted to promote the comforts 
and heatlh of its guests. The table will be supplied with the best the N. Y. 
and Boston markets afford. 

The hunting and fishing is excellent. Canoes and experienced guides 
can be procured at the hotel. 

The soil is of a gravelly nature and readily absorbs moisture. The lakes 
are peculiarly free from 'fogs. Malaria and Hay Fever is unknown. 

Dr. J. A. Thessell, of Boston, occupies a lodge in the vicinity of the 
hotel, and may be summoned at any time should the services of a skillful 
physician be required. 

Childwold Park House is reached from BOSTON, via Central Vermont 
R. R. From NEW YORK, via N. Y. C. & H. R. R. R. WAGNER CARS FROM 
BOSTON AND NEW YORK TO CHILDWOLD STATION. Also reached from 
PLATTSBURG, via Chateaugay R. R. and Saranac Lakes. 

Terms, $3.00 per day. Special Rates by week or season. 

Send for illustrated book. Daily Mail, and Telegraph at hotel. 

WM. F. INCOLD, MANAGER, - - CHILDWOLD, N. Y. 

IPOlSriD "VIE-V7" HOTJSE, 

GALR, N. Y. 

The Hotel will be abundantly supplied from the adjoining farm with milk, 
cream, fresh eggs, berries and game in their season, and vegetables. 

Every effort will be made to insure the comfort and welfare of .quests. 

The Hunting and Fishing is the very best. Catamovint Pond is directly 
opposite the house. Boats and competent guides can be had at all times. 
Livery in connection with the hotel. Accomodations for 100 guests. 

Terms. S3. 00 per day : jSS.OO to .*13.00 per week. 
Special rates for the season. Address E. P. GALE, Prop., Gale, N. Y. 

RAILROAD FACILITIES. 
The Pond View House is six miles by stage from Childwold Station, North- 
ern Adirondack Railroad. PULLMAN CARS BOSTON TO CHILDWOLD 
STATION. WAGNER CARS NEW YORK TO CHILDWOLD STATION. 

CRANBERRY LAKE HOUSE, 

1,600 feet above the sea. Best Sporting Grounds in the Adirondacks. Guides, 
boats, etc., furnished. Board, ^10.50 per week ; S'^.OO per day. 

MRS. E. J. BISHOP, Russell, N. Y. 

FENTON HOUSE, "^^"^1e^.?^co.„t,.. 

I More Deer and Trout than in anj' other part of the Adriondacks ! 

Cottages and ample playgrounds make it a most desirable place for families 

during the summer. As a health resort it is conceded to be at the head. 

BOARD, $2.00 PER day; $9.00 TO $10.00 PER WEEK. 

Address, CHARLES TE NTON, Nu mber Foui-. Lewis Co., N. Y. 

WlD£IWRr»"PP'^ R»qnette River, south end of Sweeney Carry. Daily mall and ex- 
Uf-J^UJuBUEir* p, press to Saranac Lake. Splendid river fishing. BOARD, $10.00 

per w^ek ; $2.00 per day. Open May 1. to November 1. Eight miles from Tupper Lake 

Station, N. A. H. R. P. O. Address, OlilVER TKOMBLEE, Wawbeek, N. Y. 



246 

JOHN F. HATCH, ^ ^ ^ PROPRIETOR. 

P. O. Address, Tupper Lake, Franklin Co., N. Y. 

Recommendation.—" The best location for sport and as healthful as any 
in the Adirondacks." — Dr. Alfred L. Loomis. 

This House is located at the head of Big Tupper Lake, at an elevation of 
1,5T5 feet above the sea, and is in tlie very center of the Lake Region, to which Dr. 
Loorais in his lecture before the Medical Society of the State of New York, called 
the attention of the profession (Vide Med. Rec, Vol. 15, No. 17, April 26, 1879). It 
is spacious and eleganL containing accommodations for one hundred guests. It 
contains large bedrooms, ranging in size fiom 11x12 to 15x17 feet, and has open fire- 
places in the parlor and principal bedrooms, Cold veater is brought into all the floors 
of the house from a mountain spring. 

ADVANTAGES TO GUESTS. 

Located at the entrance of the GREAT MUD LAKE COUNTRY, this house 
offers advantages to sportsmen who desire to camp near their families, and yet be 
in the part of the Adirondacks where deer and trout are found in abundance. 

To those seeking rest and recreation it offers with its large, airy and well ven- 
tilated rooms, superior location and benefits, there being fine lake trout fishing in 
Tupper's Lake, and brook trout fishing in the adjacent lakes and rivers, no fatiguing 
journey is required for a day's sport. 

The temperature in the hottest months seldom rises above 80 degrees. No 
mosquitoes. The house is supplied with vegetables fresh from the h&^el garden. 

Kates ^3 00 per day ; $14 to $31 per week. Special for a longer 
term. 

In connection with the hotel-is a supply and provision store atocked with the 
best goods the New York market affords. Campers can rely upon getting at all 
times, in tliis store, everything needed in the shape of provisions and groceries, 
both staple and fancy. The proprietor buys his goods of first hands in New York 
and will sell at New York retail prices with freight only added. 

Daily mail after June Ist. Steamer runs to connect with trains on the North- 
ern Adirondack Railroad, Tupper Lake Station. Through Cars from Grand 
Central Station, Nevr York. 

REDSIDE OAMP, East Side Tupper Lake. 

Hunting and fishing resort. Rates $1.50 per day ; $10 to $12 per week. Steamer 
daily to Tupper Lake Station. Through trains to New York $12.70. Post office in 

the house. Address MARTIN MOODY, Proprietor, 

3yCoo<3-3r. 'Ficeb-r^ T^Ixjzl Co., 3Sr. "X". 

T^OOSE Ri:^ER HOTEL. 

Western gateway to the Adirondacks. On the way to The Fulton Chain of 
Lakes. Accommodation for 30 guests. Board $2 per day ; $7 to $10 per week. 
C M. BARRETT, Proprietor, 

Address for Special Conveyance into the Woods. 

••••• CiLLIP CRAGr. • 

Situated on Big Moose Lake, one of the finest bodies of water in the Adiron- 
dacks. Accommodations for 20 sportsmen. Prices $2 per day ; $10.50 per week. 

P. O. Address, Old Forge, Herkimer Co., N. Y. 



247 



|5s.E)IRONE)A(S;KS 



MII^I^OR hJlW 10TE&, 



Aceonf|rTLOc]atioax^ for 4^© €yuex^fA. 

ALLz IMPROVEMENTS. 
ELECTRIC LIGHT, STEAM HEAT. 
ELEVATOR, TENNIS, BOWLING, 
BILLIARDS, BAND,P^^ORCHESTRA. 

^are*^,fat:of4per4a^; f i^.dO fo f 28 per coecjC. 
Address, C. E. IVIARTIN, 



248 

LAKE PLACID, Essex Co., N. Y. 

Overlooks Lake Placid and Mirror Lake. Large rooms. Sanitary arrangements 
perfect. Pare spring water. Telegraph in hotel. Stages meet all trains on Chateau- 
gay R.R. at Saranac Lake. Terms, $:j.00perday. $14.00to$lT.50perweek. 

HENRY ALLEN, Proprietor. 

•0iiA£HITE + F^KOE ••• INN, ^ 

£'ornierly the "Wayside." Change in Management. 

THE ADIRONDACK COMPANYy Oivners. 

Capacity 100. Rates $3.00 per day. $18 OOperweek. Open June IStn to November. 
Mrs. M. S. ELMENDORF, {Late of the Lake Placid House.) Manager. 

JP. O. Address, LAKE PLACID, N, Y. 

UNDER-OLIFF : < V 

^ t > — : ON LAKE PLACID. 

The private camp of a physician enlarged by additional cottages for families and ; 
single parties, a genera) assembly room, and a central dining hall,f or those seeking the ■ 
benefits of mountain air. It is in no sense a sanitarium, and every appearance of in- ' 
validisnaig^carefully avoided. Accommodations for 50 guests. The Attractions 
are: The sUiiauvc benefits of (omfortable camp-life with a simple, generous, care- 
fully served table; quiet and rest in surpassing mountain-lake scenery; wild woods, 
boating and fishing. Lake Placid village, with hotels, stores, telegraph and post 
office, is four miles across the lake, accessible by steam and row boat. 

Until July 1st, I After July 1st, 

HARTFORD. CONN. | LAKE PLACID, N. Y. 



Replacing the "Beede House," ^ -^ V 

(Destroyed by fire March 3d, 1890.) Formerly the "Widow Beede's." 

> ' ' - 

BEEDES, ESSEX COUNTY, N, Y. 



The above well known hotel properties have been purchased by the Keen Heights | 
Hotel Co., and will be conducted under one management. 

ST. HUBERT'S INN, which was built in 1890, has replaced the former Beede 
Hpuse. 

' Spacious rooms, open fire-places, steam heat, pure water, and perfect drainage are 
all provided for. Cottage opens June Ist. Innopens July 1st. Address for rooms and 
terms. f> 

E, H. HATES, Manager, KEENE HEIGHTS HOTEL CO., 

.rr; I ■ Beedes, Essex Co., N. T.\ 



249 

TKHKiA^US HOUSE, 

KFKNK VALLKY, NKU YOKK. 

The best of beds, tlie best of tare. Telegraph ofhce at post otVice, close by. 

RATES, $2 per day ; $< to $12 per week. Open June ist to October 15th. 
Dining room enlarged. New Cottage connpcted with the house. Five Cottages 
to Let. Accommodaiions for 75 guests. 

GEO. EGGLEFIELO, PROPRIETOR- 



TOv\\% WTOVTO ^W^\^ VA\\„.,v.,v XaOToSC ^v\1^ ^1^%^ ;,.„..v ',..;,, •^ViN^TO'.^ ..tT, ,.,..,vwc igs 

Keene Valley, Essex Co., N. Y. MARTIN BAHLER, A.M., Prop. 

RATES, $[o.oo per week ; $2.00 per day ; full price for children over 5 years. 
No transients. No Hebrews. Accomodations for about 35 Guests. Open from 
ist of July. 

The most magnificent mountain scenery of the Adirondacks is found in and 
around Keene Valley. Flume Cottage is beautifully situated on a grassy ridge at 
the entrance of "Washbond's Flume." Special attention paid to home comforts, 
and unusual facilities afforded for visiting points of interest. Tabic first-class, 
with an abundance of fresh vegetables. Running'^Water^from'the'high mountains 
in the rear of the premises. Conveyance sent to meet parties at Westport. 

Daily mail. Telegraph and express. Send for descriptive circular with full 
particulars. Address, until June 2oth,^SUMMIT, N. J. 

MAPLE GROVE MT. HOUSE, 

HENRY WASHBOND, Proprietor. 

Is situated in the central part of Keene Valley, on high ground, commanding a 
view of " Giant " and " Noon Mark," two cf the principal mountains of the Valley. 
In the rear of the house is a delightful maple grove, affording good shade. It is 
only a short distance from church, post office and telegraph office. The water is 
pure. Can accommodate about 40. 

Terms, $1.50 per day; S8 to $10 per week. 
A good livery connected with the house. Address 

HENRY WASHBO ND, Keene Valley, N. Y. 

G. F. MARVIN, Photographer, 

and Publisher of 

ADIRONDACK AND AU SABLE CHASM VIEWS. 
KEESKVILLE, N. Y. 

PORTRAITS in all the popular styles and sizes made with greatest care. 
All FIELD WORK, VIEWS and INTERIORS promptly executed. 
"Will be in KEENE VALLEY, from July 21st to August 1st. 
BEEDE'S, from August 1st to August ISth. 

LAKE PLACID, from August 15tli to Sept, 5th. 

SARANAC LAKE, from Sept. 5th to Oct, 1st, 1891. 
All orders promptly filled and work done in any part of Adriondack region, 
orrespondence solicited. 



250 



ADIRONDACK LODGE/ 



CLEAR LAKE. NORTH ELBA. 
The Largest and Handsomest LOG Building in the United States, 

AND 

The Most Comfortable House in the 



I 



i 



ADIRONDACK REGION. 

Tastefully built, in rustic st> le throughout, it is thoroughly 
comfortable, and fitted with 



EVERY MODERN IMPROVEMENT. 



i 



IX)CATED 

In the Midst of the Various Attractions of the Adirondack Mountain!^ 

TRAILS RADIATE 

From the Lodge directly to the following points : 

THE INDIAN PASS, 

AVALANCHE PASS. 

MOUNT MARCY, 

MOUNT McINTYRE. 

MOUNT JO (or "The Bear"). 
MOUNT GOLDEN. 

SOUTH MEADOW BASIN! 

All of these trails' have been carefully cut by experienced; 
guides, expressly for the Lodge, and others will be added 1 
during the Summer. 

The Lodge is the headquarters for mountain climbing is 
the Adirondacks. 

The grounds of the Lodge comprise an area of 1280 acres 

For particulars, address, 

HENRY VAN HOEVENBERGH, 

Proprietor Adirondack Lodge, 

Oascadeville P. 0., Essex Co., N. X 

Or N. T. Agency, 106 aud 108 Liberty St., New York €itv. 



251 

FURNISHED 

CAMPS AND COTTAGES, 

Cottage and Camp Sites. In the Adlrondacks. 
Apply to NOBLE & FFROUSON. 33 Pine St.. N. Y. 

Wayside InnTanf Collages, ^^-^T"'"^ 

Located at the confluence o£ *'« f ^^nda^a and Hud „ River. ;„_^FBET 

s?ad"°^;s?s\nSr¥i|.s|iftr|^^^^^^^ 

dations; cuisme unexcelled, fine drives. *3-5o ^^ king. MarLager. 
rates for June and September. B. C. KiiN<-^. ivxan^K 

_^-3^ FOOT OF ^ 

Hunting and Fishing Res'^I^I!>Di^ place for Schroon Lake pas- 
sen""err\^ates |..oo%r day il^T-OO .o^-c« Per^w^ek.^|pec.al 

for the season. J^^ i^roprietor- 

p. O. Address, Pottersville, N. Y. '^ t- 




^ " ""■" " r^ T • Riverside to Schroon Lake. Eugene 



w side on arrival of all trains from the 

i^''«T5l4so^rprt1S»lS°e.,, carriage, or! Special ri.^:of any Wad, c. 
secSJcMChoa reasonable terms by aadressing at Pottersyille. 



252 

SCHROON LAKE. 

HIS POPULAR HOUSE which contains 
first-class accommodations for 200 guests, 
will be re-opened June 15th. Hotel 
grounds extend to the Lake on two sides, 
and are ornamented with trees, shrubbery, 
summer houses, etc. Delightful Location, 
Fine Scenery, High Elevation and Pure 
Water, Finest Boating, Bathing, Driving, 
Fishing and Hunting in the Adirondacks. 
Carriage, Boat, Express and Telegraph 
Office in the Hotel. Good Stables. 

The pleasure of rural and forest life are 
here combined with modern conveniences and 
social privileges in a greater degree than in 
any other place in Northern New York. 
Terms, transient per day, $3.00 to $3.50 ; by 
the week, $12.50 to $25. Special arrange- 
ments for prolonged stay. 

Send for circulars and diagram. 

L. R. Sl E. D. LOCKE, Proprietors. 




-A_3Dii2,onsriD-£i.CK:s. 



and 15 Cottagse 

locatjeci 



TKVLOR HOUSE 

on Schroon Lake, aiiiong the pines. Capacity 175 Guests. Electric Lights. Pure Spring 
water, all sanitary arrangements complete. Amusements* Music fur parlor hops, 
BiUard Parlor, Bowling Alley, Lawn Tennis and Croquet grounds. Rates, $2.50 to $3.00 per 
day; $14 to $21 per week. For full particulars and illustrated circular, address 

C. F. TAYLOR A SON, Prop's. 

J*. Q. TATLOR'S-on-SCHItOON, Warren Co., N. T. 

Grove Point House, 

Schroon Lake. — Terms $2 per day; $8 to $12 per week. Pleasantly situ- 
ated in a shady grove, on the west side of the lake, half a mile from the 
village. Steamer Effingham will land you at the house. The rooms are 
large and well furnished. Table one of the leading features. Send for 
circular and cut of house. Capacity 75 guests. 

W. A. MACKENZIE, Jr, Proprietor, 



^ LKKe HOUSE, t^ 

Schroon Lake, Essex Co., N. Y. Open from June 20th to 

Oct. ist. Terms per day $2.25 ; adults, per week $10.50 to $14; children, 
and nurses $7.00. E. E. RIDDELL, Proprietor. (Formerly of the Riddel 
House. Luzerne. Warren Co., N. Y.) BEST OF REFERENCES ON 
APPLICATION. Special rates'to excursionists. 



253 

CHESTERTOWN, - - N.Y. 

Open all the Year. 

High dry land. Pure air. Mountain Spring Water. Fine Drives 
and best bass fishing in the Adirondacks. A First-class Livery con- 
nected. Terms, $2 per day ; $10 to $12 per week. 

V(iIcK*Hocfc*HolQl 

AND COTTAGES, 

ON SCHROON LAKE. 

Opens June 20tli, '91. GEO. OEOIL, Owner and Prop'r. 

Adirondack, Warren Co., N. Y. 



rm 




Season of Ninety-one. Capacity 100. Board $2 to $2.50 

per day. $10 to $14 per week. Open June 1st. 

Table first-class. New piano. New parlor 

furniture. Complete renovation of 

house and grounds. 

Lake side completely shaded by stately elms and maples 

and park enclosed by a magnificent hedge. 

Address MAUEIOE O'OONNOE, Proprietor, Schroon Lake, N. Y. 




HOOT" 

Scliroon River, N. Y. 

Nine miles north of Schroon Lake. 

Under new management. Repaired and refurnished. Accomodations 

for 75 guests. Unsurpassed for hunting and fishing. Dry sandy 

soil. Air salubrious and invigorating. Scenery beautiful. 

Daily coach from Port Henry from June 20th to Sep. 8th. 

A.CARSON, Prop'r-, P. 0. Solu'oon Eiver, N. Y. 



BLUE MOUHTAIH HOUSE 

.s situated at the head of Blue Mountain Lake, on an elevation of 200 feet above 
*ts surface, and 140 rdos distant. 

The view of the surrounding lakes and mountains from this point is unequaled 
in this section. 

Blue mountain is 3,824 feet above tide water; an excellent path leads to its sum- 
mit, from which sixteen lakes can be distinctly seen. 

Tine Hunting and Fishing is Kaccellen.!. 

A line of steamers make daily trips through Eagle, Utowana and Raquette 
Lakes to Fort Lake Carry, making the most delightful excursion imaginable. 

The climate is invigorating and owing to its elevation and bracing air the place 
is vrell adapted to those aflflicted with Hay Fever, as many can testify. 
Sufferers here find almost instant relief on arrival, while those who come in ad- 
vance of its anticipated attack, are not troubled with it at all during their stay. 

Passengers by Adirondack sleeper leave Grand Central Depot, N. Y. at 7.30?. m. 
arrive here next noon. Leave Saratoga Springs by morning train, arrive for 
supper. 

TERMS : $10 to $15 per week, $2 to $&, 50 per day. 

Open fkom June 15th to October ist. All communications should be addressed to 

D. H. HALL, 

Blue IVIountain. Lake, 

TELEGRAPH IN HOUSE. Hamilton County, N. Y. 

J^"Be careful and address Blue Mountain House, instead of Blue Moun- 
tain Lake House. 




JOHN G. HOLLAND, Proprietor, 
Blue Nlountain Lake, Hamilton Co., N. Y, 
Blue IVIountain Lake is thie Cem of the Adirondack 
Lakes, and is located in the Heart of the Great Wild- 
erness. 1 ,800 feet above tide. 

The New Blue Mountain Lake House is a large, durable structure, located on a 
dry, s andy elevation 50 feet above the Lake, and with it« outlying Cottages, 
furnishes ample accommodations for over three hundred guests. Main Parlpj" 
80x40 feet ; Dining Room, 125x40 feet. 

Everything new, plain, cleanly, comfortable and home-like. First-class hair 
mattresses and woven wire springs in every sleeping room. 

Pure IVIountain Spring Water, Perfect Drainage, Absolute 
Freedom from Malaria. Positively proof against all forms 
of Hay Fever. 

The Surrounding scenery is a poem of beauty, and the pure, dry, invigorating 
atmosphere is Nature's life-giving tonic. The breezes blow over pine, spruce and 
other gummy and resinous trees, which statistics prove conducive to health and 
longevity. Table first-class in every respect. Vegetables and milk fresh from the 
hotel farm. 

Open, from April to Novenat>er. 

RATES, $3,00 Per Day. Per Week, according to location of rooms. 

Daily Mails. Telegraph office in the Hotel. Large Fire-places in Parlor and 
Office. Steamers leave Blue Mountain Lake House dock daily for all points. 



255 



B^o^ ® /Hoorit^^ri ^i^ 



^1 K N o 1^ 



5TEnnD0nT • Line. 






o o o o 



tJ. G. THOMPSON, Superinlendenl 

$i)-Pue Mouafain Tsafee. 



"THE ANTLERS" and "THE HEMLOCKS." 

SEASON OF 1891. 

Under the Management of C. H. BENNETT. 
The ANTLERS opens May 1. The HEMLOCKS, July 1. 

The Antlers is centraly located on one of the finest points on the Lake, and 
comands beautiful Mountain Views of the Surrounding Country. It is built 
on the colonization plan, having in connection several Cottages that can be 
rented entire or at the usual room rates. The table is the Best that can be 
found in the woods. Boats and Guides in connection with House. Wines 
served at table only. 
For further Information Address, C. H. BENNETT, 

Raquette Lake, Hamilton Co., N. T. 

THE '• HEMLOCKS," Formerly Kaquette Lake Hotel. 

The Hemlocks is situated Long Point and is centrally located between 
the South and East Bays of the Lake. The Hotel is situated on a Bluff and 
commands one of the most picturesque views of the Lake. It has been newly 
furnished throughout in the best possible manner. Telegraph and Post 
Oflfice within two minutes of Hotel. There are also several Cottages in con- 
nection with the House that can be rented for the season. Boats and Guides 
in connection with the House. Wine served at table only. 

For further Information Address, C. H. BENNETT, 

Raquette Lake, Hamilton Co., N. T. 



BRISHTSIBE 0N RAQaETTE 



Raquette Lake, ' " Hamilton Co., N. Y. 

J. 6. n. BI^YERE, PROPRIETO]^. 

This house which has been enlarged will be open June i. Terms $12 to 
S18 per week. $2 to $2.50 per day. The house is built on the South Shore of 
Indian Point and commands a fine view of the surrounding Mountain scenery. 



NEWYORK AND ALBANY. 

STEAMEKS LEAVE RETURNING LEATE 

Desbrosses St. Pier, N.Y. 8.40 A.M. Hamilton St., Albany, 8.30 A. M. 
22d " " " 9.00 " 

SEE THAT YOUR TICKETS READ VIA 

•'DAY LINE STEAMERS." 

Through Tickets Sold at our Offices to all Points and Baggage Checked to Destination. 



I 



257 

^liiFon^acR Forestry. 

A number of gentlemen have secured, and will preserve intact, a tract of 
nearly 4,000 Acres of unkroken forest on both shores of 

THE HEART OF THE ADIRONDACKS. 

with miles of beautiful shores, sandy beaches, bold points, sheltered coves 
and the magnificent forest stretching back of all. 

Limited number of Choice Camp and Villa Sites in 10 acre lots for sale, 
cl uding Game and forest privileges of the entire tract, to unexceptionable 
parties, at $250 a lot. (A few of the best held at $500.) 

Any of these lots may be leased for three or five years at $25 or $50 and 
taxes per year, with privilege of purchasing at above prices at any time 
during lease. 

Also, Forked Pine Camp to let for season. Roomy, rustic lodge, with 
big fire-place. Kitchen and dining room seperate. Landing, Beach, Spring 
—everything complete. Applj' to Trustees, 

HAZARD STEVENS, 85 Devonshire Street, Boston, Mass. 
OSCAR B. IRELAND, Springfield Mass. 
GEORGE E. TERRY, Waterbury, Conn. 

Or, M R. SUTTON, Agent, 

LONG LAKE, HAMILTON COUNTY. N. Y. 

at 



iad 

Pond and Mountain, to which a good trail will be opened the coming season. 
Owl's Head Pond is said to be one of the best grounds for trout fishing in 
the Adirondacks. Buttermilk Falls is only 2 miles distant, where good bait 
fishing is to be had. Plenty of pickerel is also to be found here, and good 
deer, partridge and duck shootmg in their season. Guides, boats and car- 
riages to and from trains at North Creek furnished on application. Boats' 
per day, S2.50; per week, $10 to $14. Dinner, 75 cents : Supper or Breakfast 
50 cents. Open May i ; closes Nov, 15. DATID HELMS, Prop. 

E/-JLK.E HQ O^E J ^^^^ I.AKE, Hamilton Co., N. Y. 

Boats, Guides and Supplies furnished. 
BOARD, $2 per Bay ; $10 to $12 per Week. Special Sates for the Season. 

MRS. C. H. KELLOGG, Proprietor. 

raque:tt^ fauus hoteu 

Is on the direct routes from Paul Smith's and the Saranac Lakes to Long 
Forked, Raquette and Blue Mountain Lakes. This Section is noted for ex- 
cellent Hunting and Fishing. Guides, Boats, Supplies, etc., furnished on 
application. 

Board, $10 to $12 per week : $2 per day. Correspondence solicited. 
See page 113. Address, W3I. McCIiELIiAND, Wawbeek. 



258 
NORTH CHEEK, Wiiireii Co., N. Y, JOUiN MclNERNY, Prop. 

Main Street, three minutes' walk from Adirondack Company's Depot. 
Refitted and furnished throughout in first-class style. 

BOARE $6 to $10 m weel(; meals 50c. Triiit and Game in their season. 

N. B--A first Class Livery attached to the House. Parties wishing 
private conveyances to the wilderness, at reasonable prices can be accomo- 
dated. 

Address, JOHN McINERNY, North Creek, N. Y. 

NORTH RIVER HOTEL 

is on the Hudson River, 5 miles from the terminus of the Adirondack Rail- 
road, at North Creek, on the 

Direct road to Bine Mountam Lal^e, and is tlie regular dining place for passengers 

going and coming. TELEGRAPH connection with the Western Union. 

Stages and patent Canopy-top Buckboards carry guests to and from all 
trains. 

MEALS 75 Cts : $2.50 per day; $1 TO $1 5 per week. 

Buckboards run to this house on arrival of afternoon traint at North Creek 
and can be had for Blue Mountain Lake next morning. 

W. H. ROBLEE, Prop. North River Hotel. F.O No til Eiver.Warren Co- 



^j), 



JDEIjIGriaiTIFTJXj 



^m mm 



f) 



in the south part of Hamilton county, thirty miles from Northville, the terminus of the 
Fonda. .Johnstown. Gloversville and Northville Kailroad. These lakes are about four and 
five miles long respectively, connecting with various other small lakes, surrounded on all 
sides by the rtnest natural scenery, and is a famous resort for pleasure seekers. 

The Lake Pleasant Inn is situated between Lake Pleasant and Round Lake, and com- 
mands an uninterrupted view for miles around. It has recently been improved, and newly 
furnished. How boats, Game of all kinds and good fishing aboiind. Trusty guides furnished. 

Stage fare from Northville S2. 00. Parties will be met with conveyance at the station, if 
desired. Terms :— $2.00 to $2.50 per day ; $9.00 to $12.00 per week. Special rates for parties 
and families. Cottage Sites on Kound Lake for sale. A new cottage adjoining the inn 
accommodates 15. Lawn Tennis and Croquet Gi O inds. 

J. D. MOKLEY, Proprietor. FRED. H. SMITH, Manager. 

SAGEVILLK, HAMILTON CO,, N. Y. 

Telegraph and Post Office in the House. 

ARE YOU GOING TO THE ADIRONDACKS OR ELSWHERE? 

And do yon wifh to receive your papers and magazines regularly ? 

Our periodical department is perfect equipped. Subscribe through us, and you 
will be sure to receive your papers and magazines promptly. You can, moreover, 
be sure, that in patronizing us, however often you may change your abode during 
the summer months, your papers will always reach you regularly and in good order. 
We make no extra charges. * * * 

Do you require American or Foreign guide books? We always have in stock a 
complete assortment of Baedeker's, Murray's, and all the continental guide books, 
as well as of those for the United 'States, Canada, and South America. Lists flent 
upon application. " 

Send 10 cents in stamps for a sample copy of Book Chat, the brightest literary 
magazine published. $1.00per year. BRENTANO'S, 

Also of: 5 Union Square, New York. 

CHICAGO-804-206 Wabash Ave., WASHINGTON-1015 Pennsylvania Ave. 

PARIS-17 Avenue de I'Opera. LONDON-43 Strand, W. C. 



250 

FFiotograpMc Outfits, 

The old establislifd Photopiapliic Stock House and the nearest to plaecs described in this 
book, offers tourists and travelers the laiprest assortment of jjoods to select from to be found 
any where in the state outside of New York City. Orders by mail tilled piomptly on day of 
receipt, and the excellent express connections insure immediate delivery. Best material 
and lowest prices. 

I keep a dark room where plates can be changed and developed, and all preparations 
made for a journey. All the standard plates, developers, and preparations used, always on 
hand. 

J. N. IVIcDONNAlvD, 



Opposite Union Depot Arcade, 



U BROADWAY, ALBANY, N. Y. 



WEBSTER'S INTERNATIONAL 



JUST 




Published by G. & C. 



PUBLISHED— ENTIRELY NEW. 

The Authentic "Unabridged," comprising ig- 
sues of 1864, '79 and '84, (still copyrighted) is 
now Thoroughly KKVISED and ENLARGED, 
and as a distinguishing title, bears the name of 

WEBSTER'S International Dictionary. 

Editorial work upon this revision has been in 
active progress over 10 Years, not less than 100 
paid editorial laborers having been engaged 
upon it, and not less than !8i300,000 having been 
expended before the first copy was printed. 

Critical examination is invited. Get the Best* 

A Grand Investment for every Family and School. 

Sold by all Booksellers. Illustrated Pannphlet free. 
MEKRIAM & CO., Springfield, Mass., U.S. A. 



You will enjoy a very pleasant trip by lak.ng a sail up or down the Hudson 
River on the Pupular Steamers 



ii 



DREW 



»» 



or 



ii 



DEAN RICHMOND," 



-OP THl 



PEOPLE'S EVENING LINE. 

You will enjoy all the comforts of j^ood living. Tables supplied with the best the 
markets afford. The excellence of the cuisine is a feature of this line. This is the 
tourist's and pleasure seeker's route as well as the business man's. A steamer 
leaves Albany for New York (every week day) 8 p. m. Leaves New York for 
Albany (every week dav) from Pier 41, N. R. foot Canal Street, 6 p.m. 

F^are, ^1.50. Round Trip, ^3.50. 

M. B. WATERS, C. P. A. 

Map of the J^dii'ondact; Wildeifne??. 

REVISED ANNUALLY. 

FOREST AND STB EAM.—" it is the most complete map of 
the Adirondack region ever published, and is just what is wanted by a party 
intending to camp out." SHOOTING AND FISHING.— 

"State officials consult it and the Fish Commissioners depend upon it for use 
of the State Game Protectors." 

Pocket Edition on Map- Bond Paper, Post Paid $1.00. 
Address S. R. STODDARD, Glens Falls, N. Y 



26o 



TKe F^od^k C?^mQri^. 




'' You press the hit- 
ton, we do the rest,'' 

(Or yon cau do it yourself.) 

Eight Styles 
and Sizes, 

ALL LOADED WITH 

Transparent Films. 



A system which admits of the practice of photography 
without the least knowledge of the art is presented by the 
"Kodak." 

Anyone can use this camera. The operation of making 
a picture consists simply of pressing a button. No dark 
room or chemicals are necessary. One hundred pictures 
are made without reloading. 

By the aid of the "Kodak" a complete illustrated 
record of every day incidents^ a picturesque diary of every 
trip, beautiful bits of lanscape and hundreds of interesting 
scenes may be readily obtained. 

A handsome leather carrying case with shoulder strap is 
a part of each outfit, and the operator is thus enabled to 
carry about and use the Kodak as easily as though it were 
a field glass. 

THE EASTMAN COMPANY, 

Roclnester, N. Y. 

For Sale by all Photo. Stock Dealers. Send for Catalogue. 



26l 

THE 



WINDSOR HOTER, 



Saratoga, R. ^/. 

A quiet hotel of the best class. Late dinners. Music. 
White servants exclusively. ^Yi]l remain open until 
October 1st. Send for illustrated pamphlet to 

^WILLARD LKSTER, IVtanager. 

CLARENDON HOTEL, 

This aristocratic hotel opens June 25th, 1891. Coolest house, highest grounds. 
Special rates to early comers. Send for circular. 

AVERILL <& GREGORY, Owners and Proprietors. 

DR. S. E. STRONG'S SANITARIITM, 

AND SELECT FAMILY HOTEL. 

A popular summer resort. Open all the year. Table and appointments first class. All th« 
best remedial appliances. NEW IN 1891, Reception Hall, Hydaulic Elevator, Sun Parlor 
and Promenade on the roof. Illustrated circulars free on application. 

"Q^^/TIF LIFE" 

Twelve Photo-Gravures of Camp and Hunting Scenes in the 

Adirondackg, by S. R. Stoddard, size 10x13 inches. Price $3.00, 

post paid. 

Address S. R. STODDARD, Glens Falls, N. Y, 



262 



Sportsmen Never 

Enlarge 

the 

Truth 

More enthusiastically than when telling of the antlers the old 
buck carried off, or of the big fish that got away. But about a 
thing in hand exaggeration is less easy; it speaks for itself — for 
just what it is. 







(the weekly journal of fishing and shooting) 

Stands that test. We cannot begin to tell you all its good points. 
It speaks for itself. You will like its breezy sketches of sport 
with rod and reel and dog and gun; its stories of camp life, its 
accounts of tramp and cruise. Ask your dealer for the current 
number or send to us. Sample copies, lo cents. Per year, %\. 
Adirondack Number, June iS, iSgi. Price loc. Dontmissit. 

We will send free (on mention of this advt.) our illustrated Catalogue of 
best Bjoks on Shooting, Fishing, Camping, Yachting, Canoeing, 
Boat Building, Dog Training, Natural History, Outdoor Life and 
Field Sports. Address 

rOREST AND STREAM PUB. 00., 318 Broadway, N. Y. 



~2Q^^||| 



MAPS, BOOKS AND PHOTOGRAPHS, 

PUBLISHED BY S. R. STODDARD, GLENS FALLS, N. Y. 
GUIDE BOOKS. 

The Adirondacks, Illustrated.— 10 mo., 272 pages, pseudo- 
cloth cover, 25 cents. f a % t- 

Albant Evening Journal.—" Routes, fares to diflferent points, 
time-tables, maps, guides, and whatever else the traveler is mos? 
concerned in knowing, are treated clearly and intelligently " New 
lOKK Times.—" A book that may be read through from beginnino- 
to end at any time, and be found full of interesting readineniatter '" 
Troy Times.-" A delightful book, well spiced with anecdote and 
a i venture." 

Saratog-a, Lake Georg-e and Lake Champlain, historical 
and descriptive lb mo., 200 pages, pseudo-cloth cover, 25 cents 
Contains colored map three feet long, outline cuts of mountaias. 
islands, etc., as seen from the passing steamer. 

MAPS.-Map of the Adirondack Wilderness. Pocket 
edition on map-bond paper, in board cover $1 00 

Forest & Strkam.— " It is the most complete map of the Adiron- 
dack region ever published, and is just what is wanted by a imrtv 
intending to camp out.'' Shooting and Fishing.-" State officials 
consult It and the Fish Commissioners depend upon it for use of 
the State Game Protectors." 

Map of Lake G-eorg-e. Scale 1 mile to an inch. Pocket 
edition on map-bond paper, board cover 50 cents. 

Map of Lake Champlain. Scale SJ^ miles to an inch, with 
smaller mapsof the Richelieu River, and routes and distances to im- 
portant points. Pocket edition on map-bond paper, board cover, SOcts. 
BOOKS OF PICTURES. 

Lake Gaorg-e. Twelve photogravure plates 10x12 inches 
comprising over 50 choice bits of Lake George scenery. Bound in 
torchon board, with illuminated title, $1 50. Ainone- thfi 
Mountains of the Adirondacks.-Ten plates. SamI style 
and size as Lake George, $r 50. Through the Lake Country 
of the Adirondacks.— Same as above, $150. The Hudson 
A ^o^'i.^^°^,3^^ Source to the Sea —Same as above $1.50 
^3^-,^^°J® Chasm.— Photogravure, twelve pages of pictures 
5>^s, inches. Illuminated title. In mailing box, 50 cents. 

SOUVENIRS OF THE NORTH. (Price 75 cents each, 
contain troiu eighteen to thirty representative views of sections in- 
dicated by their titles, reproduced by the Photo-Gravure Company 
Size5V2XMnclie8.) Saratoga, Lake Georg-e, Bkie Moun- 
tain Lake, Baquette Lake, Long- Lake, Tupper Lake 
Region, Luz9i'ne and Schroon Lake, Wild Lakes of 
the Adirondacks, (Au Sable Lakes, Tear-of-the-clouds, Ava- 
lanche Golden, Sandford. Henderson, etc.) Elizabethtown 
^^ Fl^u ® o^a^ley, North Elba and beyond, Lake 
Placid, The Saranac Lakes, Winter at Saranac Lake. 
U-iens i'aUs, Howes Cave. In mailing box 75 cents each. 

PHOTOGRAPHS of the Adirondacks, Lake George, Lake 
Champlain, the Hudson River, West Point Military Academy, 
Ho^es Cave, Mount Desert Island, the Bay of Fundy, etc. Prices 
per d02 Crystal Stereos, $2 00 ; Boudoir Views (5x8) $3.60 : Im- 
perial Views (7x9) S6 00 ; 10x14 Views, $1.00 each : 16x20 Views 
(unmounted) in mailing tubes, $2 00 each. 

I^a-iitern Slides. Any subject in my collection of views at 50 
cents each. Transparencies in nickel frames 5x8 inches, SI. 25 : 
8x10 inches, $2.50. > -tp • '^ • 

All goods above (except lantern slides and transparencies) sent 
postpaid on receipt of price. 

Address. S. R. STODDARD glens Falls, N. Y. 



MAP OF^ THE 



ADIipNDfiGK V^ILDEI^NESS, 

BY S. R. STODDARD. 
[Light portion shows Hudson River drainage.] 




Size 25x31 inrhes. Scale 4 mles to an inch. Colored in counties. 
On imp-bond pap r in cloth covor for carrjinj^in the pocket. $1.00. 
Oi heavy plate papor for friminj;, ii mailing tube to prevent 
creasing, $1.00, post paid on receipt of price. 

' 8. R. STODDAED, PubUsher, Glens FaUs, N. T. 



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BU<,ER & TAYLOR. -''•'^»^* ^ 
C'.wa.-y of vuur maps, n,^ v/ell as the reliability of 
vuur df*.cvipi;5o:-i<jj vre have i^erfinnallj'' ksstedf acd 
la nut ov-'ti exjMRenoi re'^y imohcitly upcD eheni." 

CKAHLES T. DILLINGKAM.- 
" 'Vo-z most popular, accuisxe, aa4 ap.rviceable 

Br< Z NTANO BROS, — '' PracticaUf 
tVic OTilf Giiirfe to the Adirondack Re^an that 
can be rel'ed upon as hemg entirely trusfcwofthy 
a»1 up to daU";," 

CTJPPLES. UPHAM & CO-** Just 

!/K! bocks re--:-uired," 

J, W, BURDrCK. Oeft'! P<u-^, Agt. 
/'. <V //, .9,A\ — "Are rcco^ized a^ standard 

iiutti'viTv wpou ri)ai;t>5rs of w-hich they treat," 

71iE UNION NEWS COr-""Th(^ 
O'J.hi Dn;-; tjja-it c-ovf.r t'nfc s«cUoas indicated in a 

sai ji;fii< ! ';>:v ruamier, ^' 

THE ALBANY NEWS CO.-" We 
cuviii,:i^" vheFft the l>est." 

TH03. COOK & SON.-" We know 
of no bpjttfifr or snoiv convcrieDi bfx>ks published 
for these r«sofrl4.'' 

, FOREST AND STREAM.- '*It 
i'; the m^-nt ccmpbte and .eliable work of the 

NEV*-' VOHK TIMES, -"it h a. 
bock that may b:;; read through from beg-miaing 
to end a? any t;)Ti?, ,?iid b€ found full oi mt&rest- 
ing r^i^djngk'talter.'^ 

TROY TIMES. --"It i" a delightful 
bouCv,, v.=fcll $pf,ced wUh anecdote atsd adve»i;ure." 

ALBANY EVENING ^OXJR- 
NAL™*"''' ^•-''-'tttes, f&2i's to difff-rent poiats, 
timfi-Uoles^ rarps, i^uides, sjsd <*'hate^er eke the 
(traveler is i».o:;Uoncernedin.knowfri,g, ar« treated 
ck^d>^aad m^$Uiij:eatly." 




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